Instinct
by Kalenath Shok-Tan
Summary: Sometimes, all you know is wrong. Sometimes, all you have is your gut feelings. Your 'instincts'. Sometimes those lead you well, sometimes they don't. Sometimes... people get the wrong ideas and bad things happen. This is a fanfiction. I own none of the rights to Warframe.
1. Chapter 1

**Dust**

He moved through the night, a deadly mobile piece of shadow. His form was indistinct even in the best of light, due to the dark colors that his warframe had been coated with. Not black, that actually stood out in many more situations that it hid. Dark browns, dark grays, dark reds in some places to keep the silhouette from being recognizable, to lessen shine and break up the outline. Even during the day it would take most beings two or more looks to see his humanoid shape. The ancient art of camouflage was not lost on Tenno. Indeed, they kept many ancient arts alive.

Tenno were not ninja despite some people's claims. They had some similarity to ancient Earth spies and assassins, but little in common with the shinobi of ancient Japan. Whereas the shinobi tried very hard never to be seen, using disguises, misdirection and every other possible trick to keep their enemies guessing, Tenno did not bother for the most part. Oh, they stayed out of sight until it was time to strike, no question. But where an ancient shinobi would steal a uniform to walk through enemy lines unremarked, a Tenno would either sneak through or blow a hole through the same lines depending on personal preference. Also, when historical shinobi were discovered, if they found themselves in a straight fight with large numbers of their enemies, they were generally doomed. Tenno? Not even _close_.

He paused in his stalk, his heightened awareness of his surroundings notifying him of an enemy even before his warframe sensors did. Reflexively, he checked his weapons. Some might call his Braton Mk-1 rifle, Lato pistol and Skana sword simple, or even mediocre. But they did not understand. He had other, more powerful weapons in his personal arsenal. An Ogris rocket launcher could make a mess of virtually any enemy he had encountered, but it was…inelegant. A Glaive could –and did- render enemies down to parts but it was not controllable in flight. At least not by him. An Acrid could –depending on which poison was used- make an enemy sicken and die slowly, or kill them quickly. Any of these might be more powerful than the basic weapons that he carried for this mission. But he was an artist, not a butcher no matter _how_ some might paint him. He also wasn't stupid. His gear might _look_ basic, but the mods that his gear was equipped with were anything but.

His rifle was in hand as he waited for the enemy to show themselves. He didn't have to wait long. Mars had been terraformed long, long ago. Habitats existed on its surface that held plants transplanted form Earth after the first wave of colonization. Civilization had flourished on this, the fourth planet out from the Sun that given light to humanity. But then… The Collapse. The massive greenhouse he waited in now had become overgrown with plants of all kinds, some of the trees rubbing the ceiling fifty meters up.

He didn't remember a lot. Injuries had taken their toll on his mortal form and his warframe had struggled to keep him standing, other needs –such as long term memory- had fallen by the wayside. He had flashes at times of things that he almost remembered. Bit and pieces. Faces. But with no context, he had no way of ever finding out what –or who- he had been. It didn't really matter now. Since he had woken from cryo-sleep and been rushed into battle almost right out of the pod, he had heard a name used for him. Dust.

He wore an Ash warframe, so he guessed that was as good a name as any. He fought hard and well against the enemies who fought him. His missions were endless, but this was what he did. He had no family that he knew of. He had no other purpose. He was a weapon. He had been given a target. And unless he very much missed his guess… His target was coming.

His rifle was up and ready as a pair of hideous shapes loped out of the green shadows and nosed about. Infested Chargers. These were unfortunate souls who had been transformed by the Technocyte virus into cannon fodder for the Infested horde. Chargers were fast and mobile, allowing them to come to grips with enemies quickly. Unfortunately for them, that left little protection on their misshapen frames. Dust's Braton could easily sweep both away, but they were not his target. Between his immobility and his camouflage, the Chargers did not detect him. If they had, he could use one of his powers to evade or attack. But it would be much better if…

There! A huge form shambled into view from the side. Dust wasn't sure _why_ these Infested were called Ancients. If he had ever known, he had forgotten. Most of them seemed to be on the verge of rotting away or falling apart. But they _were_ tougher than they looked, he knew that. He also knew that the green mist around the Ancient that was his target was a particularly vile corrosive poison. If he tried to get close to the Ancient, his warframe could not protect him from the effects. But he didn't have to, the mods on his Braton MK-1 would…

**WHAM!**

Dust found himself, to his complete shock, lying on the ground in front of the Ancient, staring at the long metal rod that had impaled his arm and spun him out of his cover. An arrow. _Stalker!_

_Why didn't the crazy kinslayer taunt me? _

Dust immediately spun into motion, his Invisibility activating as he darted for higher ground. Another arrow pinned the ground where he had been. The only thing that saved him was that the Infested seemed to be just as shocked by his sudden appearance as _he_ had been. He pulled the arrow out and paused. This _wasn't_ one of Stalker's blade headed arrows! This was… a Tenno arrow. He dodged to the side, throwing the arrow away as the Infested behind him started to scream as they pursued him. The pain in his arm faded as his warframe repaired the damage but he was angry now.

_I am going to find whoever fired that arrow and I am going to _hurt_ them. Kin or not. But first…_

The Chargers tore out of the undergrowth to meet two quick shots. Neither even saw what killed them as Dust reactivated his Invisibility and waited. But then, something changed and he jerked to the side. _Another_ arrow passed through where he had been. His scans of the area were… There! He spotted a flash of movement in the trees and a hurrying figure. About ten meters up in a tree. He keyed for a teleport, his rifle coming up to point at the face of… A human _girl?_ Maybe twenty years old. The Tenno froze as his quarry did. The bow in her hands was… It was a Cernos. Tenno in origin, but it looked as if it had seen hard use. She wore an odd garment that seemed to be alive. It went from her neck to her feet and covered her hands, allowing her to manipulate the energy string of the bow. She snarled and pulled an arrow out of her quiver, only to freeze again as Dust took a hand from his Braton and grabbed the long metal piece out of her hand! She snarled again, this time swinging at him with the bow. He blocked it with ease. But… This was… Something was _very_ wrong. She knew what he was. She had to, right? So why was she…?

The tree the two were in suddenly jerked and Dust looked down to see the Ancient, stymied from a direct attack, slam the trunk of the tree again with its not inconsiderable mass. The girl, not as sure of her balance as he was in his warframe, slipped and fell. She caught hold of the branch that they had been standing on, the bow falling. Dust dropped the arrow and grabbed for her. She snarled at him again and… let go!

"No!" Dust's frantic denial jerked past his ironclad control as the girl fell towards the ground ten meters below and the waiting Ancient. But, instead of either letting her hit the ground or hitting her in flight, the Ancient seemed to arc. It's green miasma faded as the girl fell and Dust's eyes went wide under his helmet as the girl slid down the Ancient's length to land on her feet, snarling up at the Tenno. The Ancient moved away as the girl picked up the bow that had landed nearby, drew another arrow and aimed. Dust dodged and the arrow cleaved the tree trunk where he had been standing. He could kill her fairly easily. But… She wasn't his target. Instead, he took aim at the Ancient as it tried to batter the tree down again and opened fire. Each shot hammered into the Ancient with deadly effect, forcing it back until it fell. Arrow after arrow came sizzling up at him, but he dodged them with ease.

_Good work, Tenno._ The Lotus congratulated him. _He won't be bothering us anymore. Get to extraction._

But Dust didn't move. A keen split the air. The human girl had dropped her bow and was kneeling beside the still Ancient, tears falling. The Ancient's tentacle seemed to move, just a little and the girl cradled it to her chest, her scream of rage and pain was loud as it went still. She was…grieving?

_This is… not right…_ Dust said to himself. _A human __**grieving**__ for an Infested?_ Then he jerked. Howls had started all around. Other infested were coming. He came to a quick decision and keyed for a teleport again. The girl shrieked in fear as he appeared beside her, but a quick careful blow sent her sprawling. She snarled at him, no intelligence in her eyes as he raised his hand.

Something seemed to twist inside Dust as his warframe systems digitized the girl, her drawn out scream of agony seeming to last forever. But then, it was gone. The Tenno swept up the bow as well and took to his heels as the first new Infested Runners and Chargers leapt at him.

This time, speed was his ally, not stealth. He ran through the habitat, through greenhouses like the one the Infested target had been in. He ran through empty landing bays bright with the red dust that pervaded Mars. Then, he paused. A huge form had appeared in the near distance in front of him.

_Aw no…_

Dust altered his path, cloaking himself again as Phorid moved to pursue. Other Infested were hemming him in now, all kinds of infested. Despite his invisibility he knew he was detectable. But… why wasn't Phorid screaming? The massive Infested's sonic attack could draw even invisible Tenno close enough for the huge monster to pounce on. So why was it… _pacing him_? It knew where he was, that was obvious. Why wasn't it _attacking_?

Then he saw them striding towards him. Humans, half a dozen of them, all with weapons. Rifles, pistols, a couple of shotguns. The Infested, instead of attacking, made way for them! Dust's eyes narrowed as he realized that they all wore the same kind of odd garments that the girl had.

_What the FU-…?_

"Tenno." One of the humans, an older male, said sharply. "Give me my daughter!"

The ring around Dust was closing. The Infested with Phorid anchoring one side were closing in in a semi-circle. The humans held the other part of the ring, their weapons steady. Could they see him too? He scooped up a rock and tossed it. Two of the humans pointed their weapons at where it landed and he had his answer. No. But Phorid could, the massive Infested did not change course. Either it could see through Dust's Invisibility or sense him another way. Somehow.

"You are not leaving with her." The human said in a hard voice. "We will kill you if you try."

_You will kill me either way._ Dust thought sarcastically. But then…something new entered the mix.

"…" The speech, or lack of it, was not audible. But from the Infested's reaction, they _all_ felt it.

"No!" The human shouted, "Take cover!" He screamed as a recognizable form jumped from a high perch to land in the middle of the circle, its sensors fixed on Dust. The Corpus scum called it Zanuka. The Tenno called it Harvester or horror almost beyond imagining. It…didn't seem to _see_ the Infested. Oops.

"This is for your own good, Tenno. Help me, help you." That was all its master Alad V managed to say before Phorid slammed into it from behind and pinned the Corpus robot to the ground. Pieces of bot went flying as the Zanuka machine tried to fight back, but other Infested closed in and the mechanical monstrosity was quickly overwhelmed by biological ones.

While everyone's attention was on the Corpus bot, Dust saw a distant figure and teleported to it. The human wore a similar garment as the others and his eye was on the bulky scope of his sniper rifle. He never even saw the Tenno appear in a puff of smoke behind him. Before he could even realize that Dust was there, the human was unconscious and Dust lowered him back down to the ground gently. He did not kill humans. Not if he could help it

A scream of tortured metal came from below, and Dust looked down to see Phorid toss the shattered remnants of the Zanuka proxy away. All eyes were looking up at him.

_You will not take what is ours. _

The inhuman voice was nowhere and everywhere. Power surrounded Dust and pulled him towards the ledge, but he fought back with every fiber of his being. He was Tenno, not some horrid mix of warframe and robotics like that poor benighted proxy had been. He would not submit. He jerked forward until he found a door. As soon as he passed the door, it closed, the sonic barrage cut off and he ran again. He could hear Infested behind him as he darted up, then over. Then he was slammed to the ground by something. He rolled and the Leaper gave a cry as his Skana came up. The cry cut off, but something else hit him. His initial response of removing his second attacker's head with his Skana like the first was shelved as he saw a wild eyed human woman trying to _beat_ her way into his warframe.

"Give me back my daughter!" She screamed as she hit him with her bare hands.

He didn't want to hurt her and he could hear pursuit closing behind him, so he hit his Invisibility again and jumped over her, sheathing his Skana again. She did not pursue. Instead, she gave a shrill cry and knelt, crying. The sound…hurt him more than Phorid's sonic attack had, but he had to get away. He had to report this!

_This is wrong._ Dust thought to himself as he saw the landing grid ahead where his ship would meet him. _Humans, fighting _besideInfested_? This is wrong!_

Behind him, he could hear more and more pursuit, but he jumped up and grabbed hold of one of the large power lines that ran between the landing pads. As long as he did not ground himself on anything, he was fine using it as an improvised zipline. If he did, well, he wouldn't feel a thing. He would be _dead_ before he could feel anything. But he had used such improvised ziplines hundreds if not thousands of times. He released his grip on the line at just the right time and landed easily on the open pad. His small ship rose up to meet him, the alcove that served as an airlock to its interior facing him. He turned around and stepped backwards into it. As he did, he saw humans and Infested on the landing pad above.

It was too far even to shout, but one of the humans made a throat cutting gesture at Dust that the others mimicked. But then the voice of Phorid came again.

_You will not keep what is ours._

Dust did not reply and his ship quickly boosted for the sky, leaving him time to ponder as the airlock pulled closed and he was settled into his ship, his home. His one true refuge from everything. But suddenly, it felt cold, dark and alone. He checked his passenger, but she slept in her electronic limbo. Getting her out would not be fun. But for now, she was safe.

But why had she shot at him? Why had that ancient saved her when she fell? Why did those other humans act as they had? None of this made any sense to the veteran Tenno. Protecting humans was what he did. What the Tenno who followed the Lotus tried to do. So… He shook his head.

_I need to call this in. _Dust told himself with a sigh. _I hope my warframes recorders worked right or I might wind up in a small padded room beside this girl. I can't do the padded room…again… _Against his will, he shivered.

Somehow, he didn't think it was insanity. It couldn't be anything so simple or benign. Not if Infested were involved…


	2. Chapter 2

**Interrogation**

"Thank you for being so prompt, and for your cooperation." The white clad doctor said calmly as Dust entered the room.

"Did I have a choice?" Dust asked mildly, looking at the armed guard who came in right behind him. Dust wore robes. His warfare was currently being scrutinized. But that did not make him less lethal. Far from it. If anything, his vulnerability would make him _more_ dangerous, as he would attempt to resolve any problems quickly, before his opponents could react. That usually meant lethal force. "I wasn't aware I had a choice." Dust said as he waited.

The guards hadn't been stupid. But they also hadn't been particularly polite. As soon as Dust had stepped out of his ship at the colony landing bay, he had come face to face with a dozen rifle muzzles. Since he wasn't really interested in killing other Tenno, even rude ones, he hadn't resisted when ordered to exit his warframe. They had been insistent and he had complied with their instructions, allowing them to decontaminate him twice, for whatever good _that_ would do. Then they had given him a fresh pair of robes and escorted him to this room. He glanced around idly as he waited for the doc to respond

The doctor sat behind a table which, unless Dust missed his guess, had a force shield emitter in it. The door behind him had clicked after shutting, locked. The guard beside him carried a Burston rifle as if he knew how to use it. Another chair sat in front of the table. Dust ignored it, seeing a wall that had a huge mirror on it, likely two way. He knew without seeing that he was under observation by many forms of sensor and being recorded.

"Ah, yes…" The doctor said after a moment. "I do apologize for the discourtesy. But you have to realize… What you told us in your report seems…farfetched."

"_Farfetched_?" Dust asked with a snort. "Doc, that situation was so far _beyond_ farfetched that is simply isn't funny. You have seen what is left of the wound." He held up his arm slightly, prompting a cough from the guard. Dust looked at him, looked him up and down and then looked back at the doc who had paled. "Have you looked at the warframe records?"

"Well…No." The doctor said quietly. "You didn't extract as ordered."

"Doc…" Dust said, shaking his head. "I had an unknown situation. A human girl who was shooting at me with a Tenno bow. Who shot _me_ with said bow." He flexed his arm again. "What was I supposed to do? _Leave_ her there?"

"Your mission was accomplished." The doc said with a shake of his head. "Why did you stay?"

"I was _trying_ to figure out why the girl shot me." Dust said with a shrug. The guard coughed again and Dust snorted. "You might want to have that cough checked, pal. It sounds serious."

"_You_ might want to-"Whatever else the guard was going to say was cut off as the doc raised a hand.

"We are all friends here." The doc said quietly. "Please…" He indicated the chair. "Take a seat, Tenno."

"If it is all the same to you, I will stand." Dust said, still mild. "Nothing against you, doc. But coughing boy here does _not_ inspire trust." The guard bristled, but wisely remained silent.

"I am afraid I am going to have to insist." The doc said, a touch of heat in his tone.

"Then I am afraid I am going to have to tell you and you faithful minion here…" Dust said as he slowly raised his right leg to cross behind the left knee, still standing upright. "…what you can do with yourselves. Want to clue me in why you are treating me like this?" His voice was still mild, but the guard snarled.

"Then I am going to-…" He moved to prod Dust with the barrel of his rifle, but then it wasn't in his hands! Before the man's eyes, Dust field stripped the rifle, tossing pieces of it around the room. Parts hit the shield over the table, but none even came close to where the doc sat, his face impassive. Dust had a grin on his face as he tossed the stripped receiver back to the guard. He hadn't moved from his stance!

"You are gonna _what_, coughing boy?" Dust said with a hint of malice in his tone and the guard bobbled the catch and stumbled as he finally caught it. "_Try_ to put your rifle back together?"

"Tenno Dust." The doctor said with a sigh of exasperation. "We are trying to understand what you did and why. Why you digitized a human without orders."

"And you didn't _bother_ to read my warframe's records." Dust said with a shrug. "So you just decided I had to be nuts. Fair enough." He said with a shrug. "I am."

"You _admit_ it?" The guard demanded, obviously trying to decide if he should go for his sidearm. The holster was designed to keep weapons from being taken by prisoners, but if he drew it…

"Well, duh." Dust said with a snort. "And if you want me to disassemble your _Lex_, go ahead and draw it. It's been a while since I did fieldstripping on one of those."

"Guard." The doctor said flatly. "Back up and do _not_ draw your weapon. That is a _direct_ order." Dust nodded and the doc paused. "You approve?"

"Well, since that is the _first_ smart thing anyone has said since I arrived." Dust said with a shrug. "Yeah. I approve. But no, I am _not_ going to sit in a chair set up to restrain and sedate me so you can lock me in a little padded room and forget about me. Sorry." There was precious little apology in his tone.

"We wouldn't do that without cause." The doc protested. "We just want to talk."

"Bullmalarkey." Dust said without rancor. "You all made your judgment before I arrived. I am unstable, dangerous." His voice changed to a mocking, wheedling tone. "Evil. Horrible… just plain wrong…" He shook his head and spoke normally. "So… Gas? Electricity or are you gonna have this idiot try and hit me with something else?" The guard glared but did not move. "And I _do_ stress the word 'try'."

"Look, we want to help." The doc said quietly.

"No." Dust said, his tone turning mild again as he let down his right leg and raised his left in a mirror of what he had been doing. "You want to lock me in a little tiny padded room. Again." Suddenly the temperature in the room seemed to plummet. "And then _forget_ about me. Again." Menace sang in his tone, but then it vanished. "Of course,_ I_ am not your problem."

"No?" The doc asked. "Why not?"

"Because that poor sweet innocent victim that you are so hard at work trying to help?" Dust said, still mild. "She tried to kill me in my warframe. I doubt she is going to _care_ about such niceties as oh, being nice to quacks."

"I have had about as much as I am going to take of your insolence, Tenno Dust." The doc said quietly. "We can make this easy. Or hard."

"Hard?" Dust asked, incredulous. "No… I don't think you could manage to get it hard, even with coughing boy over there."

"You don't seem to…" The doc broke off as Dust suddenly dropped his left foot to the ground.

"No." Dust said, his tone still mild as the guard froze in place, his hand on his pistol, but it not drawn. "It is _you_ who does not understand. Hard? You have no idea what hard _is_. Hard is not killing every single _moron_ in a white coat I see. Hard is keeping the _rage_ that I feel at what you all did to me and others from boiling to the fore every _single_ time I _see_ you. Hard is not laughing my _ass_ off at your attempts to 'be my friend' when you couldn't care _less_ about me."

"Look, you-!" The guard pulled his pistol, then he was on the floor, clutching a wrist that was bent the wrong way. His pistol was in Dust's hand.

"You didn't even _gene lock_ it?" Dust asked, incredulous. "You _want_ me to kill you!" He shook his head and fieldstripped the pistol. "I won't. No matter how hard you morons push me, I will not kill kin. You people pushed me way too close the last time I was in your tender care. Never again." This time, he didn't toss the pieces, he was… assembling something.

"What are you doing?" The doc demanded as he tapped keys. A hissing sounded, but Dust ignored it. He could hold his breath longer than any doc.

"Shorting out your shield." Dust said calmly as he threw the thing he had made at the doc. The odd device slammed into the shield which…collapsed in a shower of sparks. Before the doc could move, Dust was beside him, a hand on the man's arm. "Now doc… Am I _crazy_, or just _angry_?"

"Neither." A new voice had Dust freezing. A door behind the doc opened and an Ember warframe stood there, her posture amused. "You are _playing_, Dust." She said with a sour laugh.

"Jasmina." Dust said slowly. This was an entirely different thing. The Ember warframe was fully armed and he could see other armored forms behind her. "A delay?" He asked slowly. "Dangerous ploy."

"They wanted proof." Jasmina said with a sigh. "The Elders."

"Proof?" Dust asked, confused. "Of what? That I am _angry_ and _crazy_?"

"No, Dust." Jasmina said with sigh. "That _despite_ the horrible treatment you got from idiots dressed like him…" Jasmina nodded at the frozen doc in Dust's grip. "That you won't kill kin without cause. That you are _not_ crazy."

"Are you _sure_?" Dust asked, then paused as Jasmina stepped back, holding the door open. "Okay,_ I_ am not crazy, _you_ are!"

"Lots of people have said that, brother." Jasmina said with sigh. "Come on, we need to talk." Dust dropped the doc's arm and walked to the door.

"The hissing?" Dust asked softly as the door shut behind them. They started walking, the other armored forms, guards, nodded to them, but did not follow.

"Oxygen." Jasmina said with a snort that Dust shared. "And yes, the doc and guard were both volunteers."

"I…" Dust swallowed. "Jasmina, I…"

"Dust, no one _blames_ you for being angry." Jasmina said quietly. "We all are. Those morons in the secure psyche unit caused more problems even than _Serene_ did in her breakout. You are handling it very well." She said as she walked.

"I stay away from kin as much as I can." Dust said with a shrug. "Lots of opportunity to use violence out there on beings who _actually_ deserve it." Old shame sang deep in his voice.

"Dust." Jsmaina's voice held worry now. "It wasn't your fault. What happened."

"It was my rifle." Dust said quietly. "My responsibility."

"I _stepped_ in _front_ of you!" Jasmina snapped. "My own _stupid_ fault I got shot in the back! _Geez_, you are aggravating!"

"Guilty as charged, sister." Dust said with a shrug. "Where are we going?"

"They pulled her out. Moved her to a buffer. They will pull her out completely in a few minutes." Jasmina said quietly. "We _did_ look at your warframe records. That was part of the delay. We didn't believe what we saw any more than _you_ did. But she was _definitely_ trying to kill you. Then the rest."

"Her first shot came close." Dust said, raising his arm and looking at it. "I bet my camo fooled her a little. Jasmina, she wasn't… She wasn't all there."

"I saw." Jasmina said with a shudder that was apparent even through her warframe. "The others were… at least lucid. She wasn't."

"I don't know, Jasmina." Dust said quietly. "They were… It was like they were working with the Infested, which makes _no_ sense at all."

"Actually… it does." Jasmina said with a sigh. "And that information stays close." She said with a sidelong glance. Dust stiffened but nodded. "We have heard a number of reports of… more sapient acting Infested for some time. Karl's people have run into them more than most, but other clans too."

"How is that big lunk?" Dust asked with a grin. He liked Karl.

"As secretive as ever." Jasmina said with a sigh, but neither really minded. Operational security was a must in their daily lives. Knowing too much could get a Tenno killed just as dead as knowing too little. The difference was when a Tenno knew too much, more than just _their_ lives were at risk. "Most of what he does now is on the 'Top Secret' list. As in, I know he is out there, and sometimes a general area, but no one knows _what_ he is doing except _maybe_ the Lotus."

"Karl would not go rogue." Dust said quietly. "Not a chance in hell."

"I know." Jasmina agreed. "So whatever he is doing is for us all. He can be infuriating, especially his absconding with Serene the way he did."

"_What_?" Dust demanded. "_What_ about Serene?" Jasmina looked at him and he shrugged. "I have been… out of the loop."

"Serene was fading." Jasmina said with a shrug of her own. "Iriana, the tower, Sara and Iriana's daughter Mishka were trying, but Serene was sleeping _way_ too much. Karl showed up out of nowhere, somehow convinced Iriana and Serene to let Serene go, and then Serene, Sara and Mishka just vanished. Even Iriana doesn't know where they went." Dust's eyes went wide at that. "No one has seen them for weeks."

"And Karl says nothing." Dust's words were not a question.

"I haven't worked up the guts to ask." Jasmina admitted. "Karl would not endanger Serene, you know this."

"I do." Dust agreed. His memories might be full of holes, but he did remember the recent mess with Serene and Karl. He hadn't been with Jasmina when her clan went into help Karl take care of the Nicholas' renegades, but he had heard all about it. "So… what are we doing?"

"We are point on this." Jasmina said with a nod as they came to a door. It opened and Dust paused as he saw his warframe with it's weapons just inside. "Go on, get suited up. We are on short time." Jasmina said.

"You want me running around a colony in a warframe?" Dust asked, concerned. "Jasmina, I am not sure of my own reactions. If I see a white coat, I might toss a Shuriken or two before I can stop myself."

"You keep saying things like that." Jasmina said quietly. "But even when pressed, you don't kill. I trust you." Her simple words brought him up short.

Dust stared at Jasmina for a moment and then sighed. He opened his warframe and paused. He reached in and extracted a small dead Koi fish. His face was amused as he tossed the aquatic carcass towards the Ember who caught it.

"A _fish_, Jasmina?" Dust asked as he stepped into the warframe. "Couldn't you have thought of anything…nastier?" He asked sourly as his warframe sealed. "And isn't killing a Koi supposed to be bad luck?"

"If that fish _were_ my work, it would have died of natural causes." Jasmina said primly as the fish in her gauntlet vanished in a puff of fire. "But I have _no_ idea what you are talking about."

"Oh, I dunno." Dust said as he ran diagnostics and then stiffened. A grinning skull and crossbones had appeared on his visor. "Like a short run virus that pops an image up on my HUD?" He asked sourly as he purged his systems and the display vanished.

"Oh, like the one you hit _me_ with during that run to Ceres?" Jasmina asked innocently. "I have _no_ idea how that might have gotten in there."

"Point to you." Dust said with a grin as his systems came online again. "But I _will_ get you back."

"In your dreams, silly boy." Jasmina said with a laugh. "In your dreams."

Dust chuckled and then he sobered. He checked his weapons in reflex, they were the same ones he had used on his last mission. His warframe reported servicing and records downloaded as he checked his own, special telltales. No one had tried to access the core systems. He trusted Jasmina as far as he trusted anyone, but… That trust only went so far.

"Ready." Dust said as he took a step forward, his warframe a second skin. "Where to?"

"The girl will be unshipped in Secure Holding Five." Jasmina said with a nod. "Iriana is coming. She wants to talk to you."

"Iriana is here?" Dust said with a start. "Wow. This is big."

"Not here yet but… Yeah." Jasmina agreed as the pair of warframes started down the hall. "It's big and if I do not miss my guess, this is going to be a really big _mess_."

"Well, good thing were have an industrial strength incinerator along for the ride." Dust said with aplomb. "Just the thing for big messes."

"You are cruisin' for a bruisin', brother." Jasmina said mildly. But he could see her tension.

"Least I could do, Hot Stuff." Dust said with a snort as he danced away from her swat. "Too slow!" He caroled. "Oh come on, Jasmina. Don't get hot!"

"You can stop anytime." Jasmina said with a groan. "You made your point. You are _sick_."

"Why would I do that?" Dust asked with a snort as they walked, but kept his eyes out for Jasmina's vengeance. She would find a way. She always did. He did like her. "Baiting you is fun."

"You have an odd definition of _fun_, Dust." The unexpected voice had Dust freezing in mid stride. A black Banshee warframe strode from a cross corridor to join the pair. "But it is good to see you."

"Ah…" Dust said with a swallow. "Two? You, Jasmina and me… isn't this overkill?"

"I hope so." The Tenno known as Two said quietly. "I really do. But the way things have been going lately? No."

"I see." Dust said with a gulp. Then he grinned under his warframe. "Ah the possibilities. Hot sound, fire and…" He paused as a light pressure on his warframe made him look down. Two had a Dark Dagger poised at a _very_ uncomfortable angle for a guy. "Or… maybe I'll just shut up now."

"Bets on how long that lasts?" Two asked Jasmina as she sheathed her dagger.

"Ten minutes." Jasmina said quickly.

"You are on." Two replied. "Five minutes."

Dust opened his mouth, but then closed it. He would bide his time. He could be patient. But he knew this was going to be a long day.

And not a fun one.


	3. Chapter 3

**Feral**

It wasn't as bad as Dust had feared. It was worse. He tried to remain dispassionate as the girl on the screen writhed in the bonds she had been confined to. Her screams had tapered off, but not from calming down. No, she was simply exhausted from snarling, spitting and trying to bite the personnel who were around her. All wore biohazard suits, not quite warframes exoskeletons that provided a great deal of protection from almost all known pathogens. The Technocyte virus was a noted exception. Dust didn't like docs, and he had his reasons. But he did _not_ doubt the courage of the four medics who were tending the girl, cleaning her, scanning her, trying to find answers without hurting her. The restraints kept her from hurting them, but could not help hurting _her_ as she struggled.

"The garment _is_ alive." A voice said over a speaker as Dust, Two and Jasmina all waited in an observation room. It had lots of monitors connected to various sensors. "It is not anything we have seen before. It acts as protection, hydration and appears to have limited camouflage abilities as well."

"She was concealed in the trees." Dust said quietly. "That is why I didn't see her. If her first shot had hit square… I wouldn't be here."

"Almost a warframe." Two said, worry in her voice.

"Not quite." Jasmina said, her own voice neutral. "But worrisome. Composition?" She asked the air. A display of elements appeared on a screen nearby and Jasmina scrutinized it before relaxing. "All natural elements that would be found on Mars. None of the exotics."

"This isn't something humans can make." Two said quietly. "Is it?"

"No." Dust replied absently as he watched a nurse carefully wash the girls' matted and filthy hair careful to stay away from the gnashing teeth. "Wait…" He said sharply. "Focus on that. Just above the right ear." The display he was watching split, showing his selected site and he inhaled. "Jasmina…"

"I see it." Jasmina said with a gulp that Two shared as both looked at a mass of flesh growing from the girl's skull. It was _not_ human flesh. "She is infested. Damn it."

"_Is_ she?" Dust asked, absently checking another scan. "The growth seems to be purely surface, no penetration of the skull apparent." All three Tenno scrutinized the readings. The tiny growth seemed to just be hanging from her skin.

"We are reading odd residue on her skin near that spot." One of the medics reported. "It is similar to what was found with Tenno Michelle when she was found in an Infested pod." The girl renewed her thrashing and he sighed. "We may have to sedate."

"Do what you need to do, medic." Jasmina said quietly. "We don't want to hurt her."

"And don't let her hurt you." Dust found himself saying. The other warrior Tenno looked at him and he shrugged. "Despite my feelings… _We_ break things. _They_ fix them. Neither of us is as useful without the other."

"We will need to run a full series of scans." The medic said diffidently. "Do you want us to try and remove the growth?" The Three Tenno looked at each other again and Jasmina shook her head.

"Not yet. We need answers. I am keying a new scan series focusing on that." The Ember said as she started typing on a holographic keyboard that appeared in midair. "Any sign that she is calming at all?"

"None." The medic replied. "She tired herself out, but then she began thrashing again. Tenno, I recommend we sedate and remove that growth." He paused. "At the very least we can determine its composition."

"Anything on the other side of her head?" Two asked. The medics paused and checked, but nothing showed. The girl's struggles did not hinder the scan in any way, but she was obviously hurting herself. "Jasmina?"

"Sedate her." Jasmina said sadly. "More specialists will be arriving shortly. We should be able to… NO!" She screamed as the girl on the monitor managed to get a hold of the arm of one of the nurses. The girl twisted, trying to hold, as the nurse retreated quickly. But the bio hazard suit that the Tenno nurse wore… tore. "Full quarantine! _Now_!" Jasmina commanded and seals all around the area clunked as doors closed and a hissing of pressure was felt. That would keep any airborne pathogens from getting free of the quarantined room.

"Aw crap!" The nurse said quickly, backing to the wall as the other medics retreated. "Full quarantine acknowledged." The girl hissed in triumph and continued her fruitless struggles, disregarding the abraded and bleeding skin she was now showing.

"Did she break the skin?" Two demanded. The nurse held up her arm and everyone relaxed a little as they saw unbroken skin under the torn material. "Thank the ancestors. You are in for a nasty stay in decontamination, but it should be okay."

"'Should' is not good enough with this virus, Ma'am." The nurse declared. "Do what you have to."

"We are not going to _kill_ you on a 'maybe' nurse." Jasmina snapped. "Stand down. We will find out soon if anyone has been exposed."

"If I… change…" The nurse said, swallowing heavily. "Please… don't let my husband know."

"Don't borrow trouble, nurse." Jasmina snapped. "Until we know for sure, we cannot act precipitously. If we do find out… I will handle it. _Until_ we do, we do our jobs, yes?"

"Yes, Ma'am." The nurse said, straightening. "I just… I have never been so scared in my life."

"You are doing fine, Nurse." Someone said with Dust's voice. "It's a horror." The other warframes looked at him, but refrained from comment. "She is going wild. _Can_ you sedate her like that?" The male Tenno asked, worried.

"I don't…" The medic in charge in the room looked at the girl who was struggling for all she was worth. "Our normal sedatives won't work if she is that excited. She will metabolize them too quickly. A hypo spray will just hit her skin, not penetrate. Also… any really powerful sedatives may have… unpredictable reactions. That is if the covering doesn't interfere."

"Gas?" Jasmina asked. "We _really_ need to scan her completely."

"Even the anesthetic gas from a warframe might have…unpredictable effects in her state, Ma'am." The doctor said with a visible wince. "I am not sure what we can do."

"Calm her down." Dust said slowly. "We have to calm her down."

"I am open to suggestions." Jasmina said sharply.

"She is acting like an animal." Dust said softly. "Treat her like one."

"Are you _out_ of your mind?" Two demanded. "This isn't an animal! It's a _human woman_!"

"Who is _acting_ like an animal." Dust replied easily. "Animals have certain basic responses. She is hurting. She is lashing out at what is hurting her. She can't reach it, or what she sees as her tormentors."

"So… what do we do?" The doc asked. "This is… If she keeps thrashing, she will hurt herself badly."

"Let me think…" Dust said quietly. "I don't quite remember, but I think I dealt with animals before somewhere. If an animal was hurt, first thing to do was gain trust. Ease the hurts."

"We can't get close!" The doc said sharply. "If we do, she struggles harder."

"_You_ can't." Dust agreed. "Step back."

"Dust!" Jasmina snapped, but it was too late, he had keyed for a teleport.

Dust appeared in the room beside the thrashing girl, who froze in mid motion on the exam table, her eyes wide. She was quivering in fear and shock as he slowly reached down and unstrapped her right arm. She didn't move as he raised it, then her eyes went _very_ wide as the nurse she had grabbed stepped forward to spray an organic bandage over her wounds. She stared, first at the Ash and then at the nurse, then at her arm. She made an odd noise, almost a mewl. Then she relaxed. Dust did not. He laid her hand back down and she did not struggle as he restrained it again.

"She knows we are trying to help. She realizes that the pain is gone and it came when I touched her. " Dust said quietly as he moved around the table to unbind her other wrist. The woman did not react as Dust held it up to be treated. "She knows she cannot fight right now. She is marshalling her strength to try and escape." He rebound the girl's wrist and then did the same as before with both ankles. One at a time, the damaged skin was treated and the medical personnel withdrew. The woman did not resist, but did not help either, her eyes never leaving the Ash. "She _remembers_ me."

"Dust…" Jasmina said with a snarl almost as good as the human woman's. "That was dumb."

"You would have argued for an hour." Dust said reasonably. "How much worse would she be hurt?" He moved up to stand beside the woman on the table again and held out his hand. He paused as she gave a low mewl of fear. "Easy, honey…" Dust said in a crooning, gentle voice. "No pain this time." She jerked as green mist started to fall from his hand, but relaxed when it touched her and soothed the rest of her injuries. She stared at him, uncomprehending, then jerked a breath and fell asleep. "Good girl." He said sadly, smoothing her hair.

"Dust." Jasmina said and then let out a long suffering sigh. "You _done_?"

"For now." Dust said softly. "She isn't acting like a human, Jasmina. She is feral." He paused. "You know… That is _exactly_ it. She isn't like other humans we have seen. She was…"

"An animal." The doc said, cautiously scanning the girl as Dust stepped away from the table. "At the bare bones, basic level, humans and Tenno are the same. Animals." Dust looked at him and the doc shrugged. "Bio-mechanical armor or not, you feel. You think. But at the heart… you react to instinctive stimulus."

"True." Dust said with a nod. "Pain, fear, anger, hunger. All these and more." He mused. He shook his head. "Love and grief…"

"You _really_ think she was grieving for the Ancient you killed?" Two asked, her tone painfully neutral.

"I don't know." Dust admitted. "We need more information. The medics can't control her. I can."

"_Dust_…" Jasmina said with a groan.

"Yes, I don't like her in pain." Dust said mildly. "No, I am not empathizing with her. She tried to _kill_ me, Jasmina. I want answers." He stepped away as the medics brought a gurney close and started transferring the unconscious human to it. "I'll stay close until we know if she is contagious." He said, his faceplate turned to the nurse with the torn suit. She nodded a little. "I can keep her under control, Jasmina."

"By terrifying her." Jasmina protested.

"Actually…" Two said quietly. "She wasn't scared. Or, she was. But it wasn't terror on the monitors so much as…" She paused and now her voice held incredulity. "_Respect?_" She asked.

"Figured." Dust said as the gurney started off and he kept pace with it. "Most animals have a hierarchy. They do not understand complex concepts like civilization. Something hurts, they snap at it. Something soothes a hurt and they want it to continue. Someone feeds them…" He shrugged as both Two and Jasmina inhaled sharply.

"It can't be that simple." Jasmina said with a sigh. "But… between the scans, they can sample her stomach contents. See if the gunk Michelle described is there. You will stay?"

"I'll stay." Dust said as the docs eased the gurney under a set of scanners and backed away. Dust himself retreated to the wall as energy started bombarding the sleeping human woman. "Let me know of anything else strange."

For several minutes, he stood impassive as the scanners worked, then he jerked as the woman on the gurney did. "She is vomiting!"

"She will aspirate!" The doc snapped. "Stop the scans and we can…" He trailed off as Dust reached the gurney, picked the whole thing up and held the whole mass on its side, allowing the woman to spew the contents of her stomach onto the floor. The scanner shut down. "Ah…"

"Get samples." Dust said mildly as he held the mass without a trace of effort. The nurses did as instructed, gathering some of the nastiness into sample containers and cleaning up the rest. Then he laid the gurney back on its wheels and stepped back. "What caused that?" He asked as he returned to his place at the wall.

"I am not sure." The doc said quietly, checking the readouts. "She… Ah crap. She is sensitive to third spectrum scan beams. Probably fourth and fifth too."

"So if you go any further…" Dust said softly, inviting the doc to speak and the medical Tenno did.

"She keeps barfing. Or worse." The doc said with a sigh. "I don't think it's natural." 

"Joy." Dust said with feeling. "So what _can_ we do?"

"We go old school." The doc said with a sigh. "We have to physically look. Take physical samples of the various areas affected to study in detail."

"As in _cut her open?_" Dust asked, incredulous.

"A small incision, a laparoscopic camera." The doc said with a nod. "But essentially… yes."

"That is not gonna fly with anyone, doc." Dust said with a groan. "She is a human. We are supposed to _protect_ humans."

"All I am saying, Tenno Dust…" The doc said with sigh. "…is that this may be the only way to find out what was done to her."

"I have a better idea." Dust said quietly. "Doc, you and your people leave the room and _lock_ the door."

"Wha-?" The doc stammered, then spun to see the girl staring at him and Dust with undisguised rage in her eyes. "That is not possible. She cannot be awake already!"

"She is." Dust said quietly. "Get out." He said softly as the girl growled and twisted on the bed. "She is about to get loose." The gurney wasn't as strongly built as the exam table had been and creaked.

"Go!" The doctor commanded and his staff fled. Dust did not move. "Tenno?"

"Close the door behind you and _lock it_." Dust said as a breaking sound came from the gurney and the tough material of the bed the human woman was lying in flexed and cracked.

"Dust!" Jasmina's voice was sharp. "What are you doing?"

"Attempting communication." Dust said mildly as he watched the girl struggle to free herself from the bed. "Keep the area locked down, Jasmina. I'll see what I can do."

"Don't _hurt_ her!" Two cried.

"I am more worried about her hurting _herself_." Dust retorted quietly as the girl finally snapped the restrains off the gurney and sat up, her eyes a mass of hate. "Intentionally or no." Dust stepped to block the only door as the girl slid out of the bed, pieces of tough plastic dangling from her wrists and ankles. "You do not want to do this, girl." Dust said aloud, his tone calm and quiet. "We don't want to hurt you."

The girl hissed and spat, her spittle landing halfway between the two. She growled, a sound of hate and fear and her teeth were all showing. Dust shook his head slowly.

"You don't need to fear me, girl." Dust said quietly. "You hurt me, I hurt you. I am sorry." He said with a sigh. "You are bleeding again." He said, his tone still mild. The girl hissed again, setting herself. "Okay." Dust said sadly. "The hard way it is…"

She charged and Dust danced to the side. The girl had a moment to see him move, then she gave a cry as she was lifted from the ground, but… She landed on her rump. She scrambled to her feet and stared. At Dust. Then at the wrist that _had_ been encumbered a moment before with broken plastic. Dust held out the broken restraint, then tossed it to the side and crouched as she charged again. Again, he restrained her just long enough to remove the _other_ partially broken wrist restraint, then he released her. She jumped at him and grabbed hold of his warframe, beating on it impotently, until she realized he wasn't fighting _back_. She gave a shrill yip of shock as both of her ankles were suddenly unburdened of broken plastic. Then she went still as he set her on her feet and stepped back. He crouched, blocking the door, but placing himself lower than her deliberately.

"Dust." He said, putting hand to his chest. He pointed at her and she hissed. "Well, I can't just call you 'girl'." He shook his head as he scrutinized her. Under the matting and filth, her hair was dark brown. "I will call you 'Brownie' until I hear otherwise."

"_Brownie?_" Jasmina asked over the link, dumbfounded.

"Hush." Dust said, still keeping his voice calm. "I hurt you, Brownie." His tone was gentle now, gentle and soothing. "I didn't mean to. I didn't want to. But I did. You hurt me, but… I don't blame you. You were defending your territory. I don't get why you and your people were working with Infested, but…" he shrugged. "I won't hurt you again."

The girl hissed at him again and retreated across the room until she curled up underneath a small desk that held medical supplies.

"Jasmina." Dust said with a sigh. "Do we have anything she can eat? She isn't bleeding badly, a couple of scrapes. But she is going to be hungry and thirsty very soon."

"Dust…" Jasmina said sternly, then sighed. "How long are you planning to stay with her?"

"As long as it takes." Dust said quietly, not moving from his spot.

"Okay…" Jasmina replied just as quietly. "You realize that trying to gain her trust may be impossible."

"I want to try." Dust said softly. "I have confused her. She knows I could have hurt her and didn't. So… She isn't sure what is going on right now. She is going to be hungry, thirsty and… Ew…" He said as the girl made a mess under the desk.

"Aw man…" Jasmina gagged as well. "We can't leave her to lie in her own filth."

"We won't." Dust said quietly. "Get me something she can eat and keep down. Water too."

"Dust…?" Two protested.

"Two, she is a scared animal." Dust said, not moving. "But she is also hungry and thirsty. And I bet she shares one thing with all the other humans we know."

"Which is?" Two asked.

"Curiosity."


	4. Chapter 4

**Curiosity**

Dust didn't move, but he watched as the female human in the corner watched him warily. When the food and water he had requested had arrived, he had put them in the middle of the floor. He…disliked putting the water in a dish. But the woman was likely incapable of handling a water bottle. She had curled further under the desk as he had put the food and water down in the middle of the wrecked scanner room and then retreated to block the door. Then he had sat and waited. He could hear her stomach growling, but she didn't move.

"Are we sure there is no communication from here to the Infested?" Dust asked after a moment longer.

"We cannot be a hundred percent sure." The voice of Healer Iriana answered him, her tone calm and unhurried. "The structures on her body prevent proper scanning and some Infested operate on some wavelengths that have never been fully explored. But the sensors don't pick up any communication. Hunger, thirst, loneliness…" The healer's voice broke for a moment. She had arrived an hour before and taken charge, the two warrior Tenno grateful for her presence.

Every type of passive sensor that the Tenno had was now aimed at this room. Specifically calibrated to filter Dust and his warframe out, the sophisticated sensors could literally read the human woman's upper conscious mind from her brainwaves.

"How long?" Dust asked, worried. "She is hurting. If she dehydrates further… That garment may not be able to help her."

"It shouldn't be long." Iriana said quietly. "There, see?" She asked as the girl slid a hand out of her sanctuary. "I have never seen this particular behavior before, but I _did_ read up on feral disorders on the way here. She will test her environment."

"Right." Dust agreed. "She will see if I react, ready to bolt back into her hideaway if I do. I'll wait right here." The hand that the girl had extended remained where it was, then the rest of the girl's body slowly followed, her gaze never leaving Dust. He keyed his external speaker and crooned softly. "That's it, Brownie. That's it…" The girl froze at his words, but then hesitantly crept further towards the food and water when he didn't make a move. "Good food. Good water. None of it is drugged, girl." He promised. "At least… it better not be." He qualified.

"It's not." Iriana promised him. "There were… words exchanged between some of the docs and Jasmina, but it is not."

"Good." Dust said, his tone still moderated to soothe and calm. The girl edged slowly toward the food, her gaze never wavering from the warframe. Dust stared at her as well. "Is it just me, or does that garment look…ragged?" It was hanging loose in places and looked painfully tight in others. It had lost its camouflage at some point as well and looked… patchy.

"It does." Iriana said, her tone worried. "We can't get a good scan on it. We need to get it off her. That is what caused her reaction to the scanners. Any longer and she likely would have gone into cardiac arrest."

"An Infested security protocol." Dust said, working to keep worry from his voice. "I like that about as much as I like the rest of this insane situation. I don't know _how_ we can get it off of her without hurting her. That's a good girl…" He crooned as she reached the plate and dipped a finger in the water to pull it back and taste. Then she had her head down over the water dish. She took a drink and recoiled, looking at Dust who hadn't moved. "Good food." He crooned. "Good water. Eat and drink, Brownie. You need it."

"That she does." Iriana said in his ear. "She is underweight for her height. Not sure about the dehydration but that cannot be helping." Apparently sure that Dust would not move, the girl buried her face in the water dish, taking long sips, but alternating them with looks at Dust who remained still.

"What is she feeling now?" Dust asked as the girl changed dishes with only a bare glance his way. She started wolfing down food.

"Her thirst has abated." Iriana said quietly. "Her hunger is…NO!" She said sharply as the girl gagged and fell. "She is choking! Dust!"

"On it!" Dust said quietly as he swept forward The girl, her face contorting, tried to recoil, but could not resist as he picked her up, turned her over and gave a short, sharp rap to her stomach just below the sternum. The girl coughed in his arms and a half eaten bit of food fell out of her mouth. She gasped in Dust's hands and then froze. She didn't move at all as he sat her back down and retreated a step. She stared at him, uncomprehending, then she snarled a bit and he stepped back again. Only when he was out of reach did she relax at all, sniffing the food again. Dust shook his head as he retreated another step to the wall. "Eat all you want, Brownie, we have more. Just take it slow. I know you do not trust me and I don't blame you."

"Just in case…" Iriana said quietly, recovering from the shock of the girl's brush with death. "I am having a bottle made up and a spoon sent in."

"You don't want much, do you, doc?" Dust said with a sardonic snort as he sat again, watching the girl eat more carefully. She wasn't eating carefully, he realized, just alternating bites between looking at him. "She likely doesn't know what just happened."

"Probably not." Iriana agreed. "But it did hurt and you did help her, so…" She sighed. "She is relaxing. Still tense, but less." Then she gave a sob as the girl fell over, he limbs flailing. "Terror, pain. She can't move. She is trying to get back to her hidey hole, but she _can't_. She is too weak. Dust…"

"On it." Dust said quietly as he rose a little. The girl hissed at him and he nodded to her, his voice pitched low and gentle. "It's okay, Brownie. It's okay. I am here to help." She hissed at him, but could do no more as he came to her side. She was heaving in effort as he stepped past her. She stared at him as he moved to her hidey hole and started pulling yuckiness out. "The bedding?"

"At the door with a bottle and a spoon." Iriana replied. The girl jerked as the door opened just far enough for a small package to be pushed in, then closed again. The human stared from the door to where Dust was working, then back, confused. "She won't be conscious much longer."

"Probably for the best." Dust said with a sigh as he finished cleaning. Then he moved past the quivering girl to the pile and pulled the bedding he had requested, basically a thick and warm absorbent pad, and took it across the room to lay it under the desk. "Doc? How is she?" He asked as he finished laying the pad.

"Nearly asleep." Iriana replied. "You want to carry her? If she bites your warframe…"

"I have an idea." Dust sank back on his heels and started singing softly. ((To the tune of March of Cambreadth but…_slightly_ different.  watch?v=LM-3l6si1WE))

**Rambo Frog travels by the moon, Meets with Mr Red Raccoon-**  
**Soon they're joined by Tortoise & Hare,**  
**To make sure the animals all play fair-**  
**A fight's broke out near the water hole, The natives have all lost control-**  
**Froggy's boys come from on high,**  
**"HOW MANY OF YOU CAN CATCH A FLY?"**

The girl stared at him, her eyes slowly lidding.

**The fight goes on, a cry is heard, Rambo Frog's caught by a bird-**  
**But don't you fret and don't you frown,**  
**Red Raccoon's gonna bring him down!**  
**The dust is up and we hear a wail, Froggy's pluckin' Birdie's tail!**  
**Boot that bird butt to the sky,**  
**"HOW MANY OF YOU CAN CATCH A FLY?"**

**Dawn is broke, it's time to roam, All of the animals wander home-**  
**They've paid the price and had a ball, Can't wait for the next big brawl-**  
**Rambo Frog whistles up a tune, Joined by Mr Red Raccoon-**  
**Tortise and Hare wave them good-bye,**  
**"HOW MANY OF YOU CAN CATCH A FLY?"**

"_What_ were you singing?" Iriana asked, incredulous. "That was no lullaby." But the girl gave a sigh and fell asleep where she was.

"No, it's called the March of Cambreadth. Just not the way it is usually sung." Dust replied very quietly as he moved to pick the girl up. "She doesn't understand the words. It's the tone, the cadence. She fully out?"

"Like a light." Iriana said approvingly.

Dust picked her up, moved her to the bedding and laid her out on it gently. Then, prodded by an ancient instinct or fragment of memory, he rubbed her hair, almost petting it. She sighed in her sleep and relaxed further as Dust moved to block the door again and sat. He set the bottle and spoon down beside him.

"Do you think she took in enough nourishment?" Dust asked carefully after making sure his external speakers were off.

"I don't think so." Iriana said sadly. "We shall see when she wakes up. If she can get to the food, all well and good. If not…"

"If not, I will feed her." Dust replied. "She is my responsibility."

"How long can you keep going?" Iriana asked. "You will need to meditate I assume."

"It's been…" Dust checked his chrono and sighed. "Nine hours… I am good for another fifteen or so. Then I will need to rest a bit. How long do you think she will sleep?"

"I don't know." Iriana admitted. "I am on duty. I am good for ten or so hours myself. Then I will get relief. Do you want to be pulled out to meditate?"

"No." Dust said after a moment's thought. "I will do it now, while she is asleep. I'll set it to wake me if she comes close or someone calls my name."

"Okay, rest well." Iriana had a smile in her voice. "I'll try to catch some too."

"Right." Dust said to himself as he let his mind fall into trained patterns. Tenno did not normally sleep. Instead, they meditated, resting their bodies and minds far more thoroughly and completely than any natural sleep. He had a moment to wish the girl pleasant dreams and then he was out.

It seemed only a moment later that Iriana was saying his name. "Dust?" Her voice held worry.

"What is happening?" Dust asked as he checked his chrono. He had been meditating for five hours, fairly standard. He looked at the girl, whose posture hadn't changed, but her face was contorted. "Nightmare?"

"I am not sure." Iriana said with a trace of confusion. "There are none of the normal signs. Her respiration, heart rate and all are normal. But her brain waves are going crazy." Then she hissed. "Dust…"

"I see it." The Tenno said softly as he saw tears start to fall down the sleeping girl's face. "Suggestions?"

"Comfort her?" The healer said somewhat dubiously. "No… If she wakes and you are standing over her…"

"She will not react well." Dust agreed. "Any reading on her garment?"

"It seems to be falling apart." Iriana said quietly. "Our best guess is that it needs some trace materials that are only found where you found her. Without a more in depth analysis though…" Her shrug was clear even over a com.

"How about the risk of infection?" Dust asked carefully. "Did you get anything on the toxicology?"

"According to everything we have determined…" Iriana said with a gulp. "She is negative for the Technocyte Virus."

"That is _not_ possible." Dust recoiled slightly. "She was _touching_ an Infested. With her _hands_!"

"We cannot be sure." Iriana said quietly. "But the nurse she attacked shows no sign of infection. The garment as well is clean. Until we can check her…"

"And to get her to allow that…" Dust said quietly. "I need to gain her trust." He shook his head and rose form his seated position.

"Be careful." Iriana said quickly.

"I am more worried about hurting _her_." Dust said with a grunt as he slowly crossed the room to where the girl lay under the desk. "Or her hurting herself." He slowly reached down to touch the girl's arm and recoiled. "Iriana, her temperature is high. Too high!"

"It is reading in human norms." Iriana said, puzzled. "What are your readings?"

"I am reading 39 degrees!" Dust said quickly. "That is too high! She is burning up!"

"Damn!" Iriana snapped. "The covering must be interfering with the temperature sensors. Can you…?"

"I got her." Dust said quietly as he pulled the girl up into his arms. She made a mewling noise, but did not wake. "What do I _do_? We can't break quarantine."

"We need to cool her down." Iriana said as orders were snapped in the background. "Can you get the garment off her? It's messing up all the readings, not just temperature."

"I will hurt her." Dust said, dubiously examining the odd covering. It had no seams or attachment points. "I can get it off, but…" He laid the girl down on the floor and spread her out carefully.

"I am sending in some gear. Get the garment off and the docs can work." Iriana ordered.

"Okay…" Dust said, bracing himself. His right forearm blade slid out of it's housing and with a quick cut, he sliced through the tough covering of her arm. It parted easier than Infested skin. The blade vanished. "She is not bleeding, so it is not part of her, but…" His gentle tug to try and roll the flap of the garment back did not work. "It's stuck to her somehow."

"They are going to have to remove it carefully." Iriana said with a growl. "They will be a couple of minutes. Can you get some fluids into her?"

"I'll try." Dust said, moving to the door and picking up the bottle. He sat beside the girl, cradling her head and putting the end of the bottle between her teeth. "Come on, girl. Take a drink."

For a moment, he despaired. But then she gripped the bottle between her teeth and started drinking greedily. He maintained that pose until the door opened and docs bustled in, their arms laden with gear.

* * *

Dust sank back on his haunches as the docs finished up and left. He sighed. They had managed to remove the girl's covering and, after some debate, also removed the growth that was above her ear. They had managed to stabilize and then lower her body temperature. Now she was back on her pad, covered by a Tenno patient gown. They had managed to get more fluids into her, but she was still badly dehydrated. So, he had a refilled bottle of water. He would…

A sharp cry had Dust jerk upright. He stared at the girl, who was sitting upright, her whole posture one of shock and fear. The girl was rubbing her body where her odd garment had been, keening in loss.

"Easy, girl." He crooned as she stared wildly around herself, then focusing on him. Her cries turned angry, but… they were different. Confused. But then she snarled and coiled herself.

"Dust…" Iriana warned.

"I know." Dust said with a sigh. "She is going to try and attack me. I'll be careful and try to get more fluids into her." He held up a slow hand as the girl snarled again. "It's okay, Brownie. It's okay. I am sorry we took your clothes, but they were hurting you."

The girl snarled one more time and then sprang, her hands forward to grab, her teeth bared to bite. The snarl turned to a yip of astonishment as Dust simply dodged her attack. One moment, he was there, sitting with his hand up, the next he was halfway across the room, standing, his posture unthreatening.

"Come on, Brownie." Dust said in that same calm and gentle voice, sinking back to his haunches as she rose to her full height. "You are scared. I understand. You feel sick. I can help." He said quietly, but sighed again as she readied herself. "Okay. Your way it is."

This time when the girl charged him, he let her come. She growled in triumph as her hands closed on him, but then she gave a sharp cry as both of her hands were suddenly pinned by a hand that was far, far stronger than even the strongest human. She tried to kick and he let her. She gave another cry as her bare feet hit his warframe. She suddenly wilted in his grip. He released her immediately and retreated again.

"Easy, girl." Dust said as he sat carefully, one hand up in an empty palm gesture. His free hand grabbed the bottle that had rolled nearby and he held it up. "Thirsty?" He asked, waving at the water dish nearby.

The girl stared at him, her eyes wide. Then she seemed to wilt again and collapsed to the floor. She was crying and rocking herself on the floor. She was in reach.

"Shhh…" Dust crooned as he slowly reached out with his free hand to touch her shoulder. She jerked away, but did not move from where she sat. "Shhh… Easy, girl. It's okay." He petted her shoulder gently and this time, she did not retreat. Instead, she lay down on the floor, her tears falling freely. "I won't hurt you." He promised as he held out the water bottle to her. "Drink?"

She stared at it, uncomprehending. He laid it down by her hand and sat back. He pointed at the dish of water and then at the bottle. "Water." She just sat and he sighed. "Iriana?"

"Yes, Dust?" The healer sounded subdued now.

"How bad is it?" He hadn't asked what they had found while using portable scanners. They docs had been…upset, but their technical jargon meant little to him. "I know the docs didn't like what they found. How bad?"

"There is a long winded technical explanation." Iriana sounded nearly in tears. "Essentially… Her brain apparently did not develop past a certain stage. She is literally not capable of higher thought."

"I was afraid of that." Dust slumped. The girl stared at him, not privy to the conversation with Iriana. "Is there anything we can do?"

"Maybe." Iriana sad with a gulp. "I will need to look into some things. Can you…stay with her?"

"Of course." Dust said, confused. "But for how long?"

"I… I don't know." Iriana said sadly. For the first time since he had heard her voice, she sounded unsure. "This isn't something that we have dealt with. No one has. Not for a long, long time. It was corrected genetically a long time ago. Bred out of humanity. I don't know if this was engineered or if she was born with it. Either way… we _might_ be able to do something. But… I just don't know."

"What _is_ it?" Dust asked, dreading the answer. "What is wrong with her?"

"If it _is_ what I think… A very long time ago it was called autism."


	5. Chapter 5

**Discussions**

"No."

The word came out cold and hard. Brownie did not hear the word, since Dust's external speaker was deactivated, but she could read his body language and tensed when he did. He patted her shoulder a little and she relaxed and went back to drinking. She needed to drink a lot. This made her messy. After the third time that Dust had cleaned up for her, she had found one spot to do her business and had let him touch her to clean her. She took a great deal of comfort from contact. She was incredibly tactile. She had spent almost an hour running her hands over the surface of his warframe while he had remained still. He had let her, then she had retreated a bit. But after that, she had relaxed some. She had even let him brush her hair a little. She didn't totally trust him, but she _did_ relax a bit.

"Dust." Jasmina's voice was worried. "It may the best choice. For her. They can take care of her."

"I am _not_ letting them lock her up, Jasmina." Dust said with a snarl. "I am not letting them put her in one of those little rooms and forget about her." Brownie shied away from Dust and he let her go.

"Dust, she is not _going_ to get better!" Jasmina snapped. "And they wouldn't forget about her."

"You don't know that. Either one." Dust said quietly, moving to sit away from where Brownie was playing with a piece of what _had_ been the gurney. It was not sharp and too big for her to put in her mouth, so he wasn't worried. Much. He did keep part of his awareness on her though. "Even Iriana doesn't know if she will get better."

"No, we don't." Jasmina agreed. "But the records we have found don't look good."

"We don't know if that is what she is. This 'autism' thing. We don't know if it was congenital or imposed." Dust said, holding his temper close as Brownie finished drinking, curled up on her pad again, sighed and fell asleep. She was still weak, but getting better. It was out from under the desk now but still a ways away from where Dust sat. "I won't let them do to her what they did to me."

"Dust." Jasmina's voice gentled. "It's not the same. She is not _there_, Dust. She is not a human. Not…really."

"Yes, she _is_." Dust said flatly. "She has difficulty. But she _is_ human. She _is_ aware. Treating her otherwise is _wrong_, Jasmina."

"You are emotional." Jasmine said quietly. "I am pulling you out."

"Don't you _dare_!" Dust said with a snap, but then he was elsewhere, back in the monitor room. "Damn it, Jasmina!" Dust snapped as the teleport released him. Jasmina and Two stood nearby, both in ready stances. "I won't fight kin, you stupid woman!" Dust snapped. "But that girl is hurt, scared and _alone_! I am the _only_ thing she knows and even halfway trusts right now. You _cannot_ send regular docs or nurses in."

"We are not." A new voice sounded and Dust froze in place. "Hello Dust." Dust turned slowly to see a Loki that he didn't know and an Oberon that he had _prayed_ never to see again. "Dust…" The Oberon said cautiously as Dust slowly sank into a combat crouch. Dust ignored him.

"If you have _any_ shred of decency _left_, Tenno Jasmina." Dust spoke slowly and carefully to the two frozen female Tenno. "You will keep the lying sack of Infested _pus_ named Redi _away_ from that poor girl. The Tenno named Redi will _hurt_ her."

"Dust, please…" The Oberon held out a hand in entreaty.

"If the Tenno known as Redi _touches_ me, Tenno Jasmina, my oath _holds!_" Dust said, focused on Jasmina. He was trembling in rage. "Only _one_ of our kin will I _kill_. Only _one_." He grated out through clenched teeth. The need, the _hunger_ to draw his blades and rend the Oberon was strong. So strong.

"I want to help!" The Oberon begged. "I…"

"Redi, shut up as you _said_ you would!" Jasmina snapped. "Go. Now." She said sharply as he balked. "Now!" She said with command as he started to protest. He nodded and left the room. The Loki remained. "That was rude, Dust." She said, calming.

"And _lying_ about my mental state to get me imprisoned in the _psyche ward_ wasn't? Breaking his _sworn word of honor_ wasn't? Disclosing things told in private to a clinical psychologist –things that were only revealed on the condition that client patient privilege would be respected- _wasn't_? " Dust asked, not relaxing at all. "If the Tenno named Redi is here, I am _not_ leaving that girl alone. That Tenno is _not_ capable of tending hurt beings. Nor is that Tenno empathic at _all_ to the needs of those that Tenno was supposedly sworn to heal."

"Dust." Jasmina said softly. "What he did was wrong. He admits it. He wants to…"

"If the Tenno named Redi touches me, he _dies._" Dust said softly. "_That_ was my sworn oath when he got me locked up. That is my oath _now_. If the Tenno known as Redi is allowed _near_ that girl, that Tenno will _destroy_ any trust we have fostered with her. It is what that Tenno _does_. Medical ethics are meaningless to such as that Tenno. The girl is fragile, too fragile to be trusted to such a fool and charlatan."

"Dust." Jasmina said in warning. "Calm down. He has experience with animals."

"I will say this only once, Tenno Jasmina." Dust said softly. "If you let the Tenno known as Redi _near_ that girl, he will hurt her. She is innocent. She trusts me. A little. If you wish to _destroy_ her, then by all means, drop her in a little room _alone_ and _leave_ her there for the rest of her life! Or worse, let that _scum_ have her!"

"Dust, they can care for her." Two said sadly. "We _can't_. It's done." Dust stiffened at her words and then spun back to where the monitors showed… an empty room. He went so completely still that everyone in the room froze. Two spoke after a moment. "Dust." The Ash didn't move, didn't speak, indeed, didn't do anything. He couldn't. The feelings… the pain… the rage… "Dust, they can tend her, remotely. They can scan her, if they…" Two trailed off as Dust gave vent to his feelings. A horrible howl erupted from the Ash. "Dust!" She cried.

"You…. _**Idiots**_!" The Ash managed to get out. Then he vanished from sight and ran.

"_Dust!_" Jasmina shouted, but he was gone.

* * *

Every Tenno colony had a collection of Zen gardens. Some had sand, some had water with small fish, some were rocky, and some were plain steel with painted walls. Dust was in a garden that held a small grove of bonsai trees. He knelt near them, tracing one of the branches with his eyes. It helped, some.

He was aware of scrutiny, but he ignored it. He was kneeling in seiza, trembling slightly as he tried to move past his emotions. Finally after an eternity, he was calm and still again. He spoke aloud.

"Thank you, brother. For letting me calm myself." Dust said, his tone far calmer than he felt. The Loki from before shimmered into view and nodded to him. "I do not believe I know you. If I do, I do not remember."

"I know anger." The Loki said calmly. "My name is Aeron." Dust jerked a little. Aeron, the _sniper_ of Karl's clan? _That_ Aeron?

"Aeron? Then yes, you do." Dust said with a nod. He bowed his head. "I must leave. Go back into the field. I cannot remain here."

"Why?" Aeron asked, his posture still.

"Because if I run into the Tenno known as Redi, I will kill him." Dust said quietly. "So I swore. So I will do. I cannot help the girl. I wish to, but if I remain, I will encounter the one whose death I swore and he will die. Then _I_ will. I can help no one if I am dead."

"I do not know what happened between you two and it is none of my business." Aeron said calmly. "But that girl is important."

"No question." Dust said with a nod. "But now she is imprisoned in the secure psyche unit. There is no way to get her out."

"_You_ got out." Aeron said quietly. "We can get her out."

"_Did_ I get out?" Dust asked slowly. "Did I _really_? Part of me is still in that little room. Screaming. Begging for contact of any kind. Begging for _death_." He shook his head. "No. No, I never left that room."

"I beg to differ." Iriana's sad voice preceded her into view. "Sorry, Dust. I didn't know he was here. They…shut me out too. I am compromised."

"You feel for your patients." Dust said softly. "Of course you are compromised. Psyche people need to be detached, sterile. AIs make the best ones, as I know too well."

"You are _wrong_." Iriana said with a sigh. "It isn't supposed to be that way. We are supposed to _help_, not _hurt_. We do, occasionally. We mess up and we try to fix things."

"Not _that_ one." Dust said flatly.

"Agreed." Iriana said quietly. "He has the empathy of a _rock_. Animals…fegh!" She actually spat.

"I can see the point of view." Dust said slowly. "She _is_ feral. But she is not dangerous unless we _make_ her so."

"She _shot_ you." Iriana said dubiously.

"I violated her territory." Dust said with a shrug. "I was setting up to hurt beings with which she had some kind of bond. What would _you_ do if I came in and started aiming a rifle at people you like?" He paused as Iriana blanched. Dust sighed. "I apologize, Healer. I had no right to bring up what happened at the Tower."

The incident with rogue Tenno assaulting the last fully operational Orokin tower was a sore spot for many, but Iriana had _been_ there. Had been abused by Nicholas and his scum before they had been stopped permanently by Karl and Jasmina. ((See What Price Honor))

"I have problems with what happened." Iriana said quietly. "But I am working on them. I took no offense, Tenno Dust. To that anyway. That… That… quack…"

"Iriana." Aeron said quietly. "Karl wants me to find out about the girl. Have you found out anything else?"

"It wasn't congenital." Iriana said softly. Both Dust and Aeron stiffened. "It was _done_ to her. But why? Or how, we have no idea. It…didn't seem like Infestation. Are you sure those humans were not controlled?"

"I can't be." Dust said with a shrug. "I didn't get a good look at any of them. I was too busy trying to escape. The records are not clear?"

"We saw faces." Iriana said with a wince. "There is a distinct resemblance between the girl and the ones claiming to be her parents. But that in and of itself doesn't mean much."

"What about the garment?" Aeron asked. "Or that odd growth?"

"They are still doing analysis." Iriana said with a scowl. "And I have been dis-invited to participate."

"Rude." Dust said softly. Then he and the others froze as Jasmina and Two appeared nearby, a quartet of armed security guards with them. "Jasmina?"

"Where is she, Dust?" Jasmina snapped without preamble.

"What?" Dust asked, confused. "Who?"

"Don't _play_ with me, Dust!" Jasmina nearly shouted. "Where is the girl?"

"You _lost_ the girl?" Dust asked, incredulous. "Oh boy." He looked at the guards, all had weapons in hand and all stayed well out of even warframe reach.

"I am not in the _mood_ for games now, Dust." Jasmina said with a snarl worthy of Brownie. "She vanished from the secure psyche unit. Where did you put her?"

"Jasmina." Dust said softly, not moving. "I have been _right_ here, trying to get my temper under control. What happened?" He was not prepared for her to shout.

"Don't lie to me, Dust!" Jasmina said with dreadful force. "This is not a joking matter! The Council has ordered her euthanized." Dust went still at that. It was _Iriana_ who shouted.

"_What?_" The healer actually screamed. "Those _ignorant_ little _**quacks**_…" She started for Jasmina, but stopped when Aeron put a hand up in front of her. "I am going to have _words_ with some people…"

"We need to find out what was done to her brain, healer." Two said sadly. "That cannot be done humanely while she…"

"_You can __**say**__ it!_" Iriana screamed at Two, who recoiled. "_You cannot dissect her while she is __**alive!**__ While she is __**aware!**__ While she is still a living, breathing __**human**__ with a disability!_" She was _shaking_ with fury. "_You…_"

"Healer…" Dust said softly, but there was something in his words. Something…dangerous. "Not. Yet."

"Where is she, Dust?" Jasmina demanded again.

"I have been right here, Jasmina." Dust said quietly. But that quiet was…wrong. Off. "Ask Aeron." Two looked at the Loki who nodded.

"He came right here, sat down and started calming himself. He has been here ever since he left the secure holding area." Aeron said with a sigh. "You have been played." Iriana stared at him, then her face went from red to white in an instant.

"Oh no…" Two breathed.

"Find Redi." Dust said, his tone dead. "And I bet you find your lost victim."

"She is…" Jasmina started, then trailed off as Dust rose in a single sinuous movement to stand with Iriana. Aeron moved to stand with them.

"Have you _forgotten_, Jasmina?" Dust asked softly, sadly. "Have you _forgotten_ our primary _function_? Have you become so inured to _death_ and _destruction_ that you have _forgotten_ what it is we _serve_? What we _strive_ for? Who we _protect_?" He asked. No one spoke and he shook his head. "_Who do we_ _**protect**__?_" He demanded, his voice taut with grief and rage.

"Humans…" Jasmina said bowing her head. "I… I had forgotten." She shook herself and spoke evenly. "I have been fooled, we all were. Redi?"

"Probably." Dust said with a snarl. "Find him and maybe we can find the girl." He bowed his head. "_Pray_ we are in time."

"He wouldn't…" Iriana said, stumbling a bit. Aeron caught her and held her until she regained her balance.

"You forget." Dust said, his tone dead. "He _lied_ about my dreams. The dreams I had after shooting you in the back, Jasmina. He said they were paranoid delusions that required seclusion. He probably planned me never to come out of there, or to be insane when they did release me. After all, who can survive two _hundred years_ of solitary confinement?"

"You did. Dust…" Jasmina held out her hand to the Ash. "I am sorry. I just… You were very upset."

"Jasmina, you have seen me very upset _once_ in my life." Dust said, taking her hand and holding it before releasing it. "Pray you never do again. I was emotional, yes. That girl tugs on the heartstrings of all of us. I was upset. When ambushed by the one I am sworn to kill, and that girl under my protection vanished? Yes, I was very upset." He turned to Aeron. "If I howl like that again, Aeron. _Shoot_ me. And make it _clean_. You _won't_ get a second shot." Aeron nodded.

"Dust…" Two and Jasmina both recoiled at that.

"You have no idea how close you came to meeting my Bladestorm, Jasmina." Dust said softly. "Which is why he left with no further argument, I think." All the Tenno winced at that. "He wants me insane, because I am the last witness to what he did. If the enemy don't kill me, then kin will. I am as much animal as Tenno, now. I focus it on our enemies, but…" he shrugged. "We need to find him."

"An alert went out." Jasmina said after a moment. "His ship is still here, so he hasn't left. Where could he take her that he wouldn't be…?" She trailed off as Dust winced. "No…" She breathed, horrified.

"There are labs…down there…" Dust said, swallowing hard. "I… I know where they are. They… Before I went to solitary… they were… I… I can show…" He shook himself, aghast at his inability to form a coherent sentence.

"No!" Jasmina snapped. "Dust, you are too close to the edge. Let us search. Please…" She begged him. "We need you. If… If Brownie is alive, she will need you." Dust stared at her, but… She was right.

"Go." Dust said, sinking back to seiza.

Jasmina, Two and Aeron all vanished at warframe speeds, the guards following. Iriana knelt beside Dust, her hand finding his arm. He slumped in place and tasted salt. Then, somehow, his helmet was open, he was crying and she was holding him despite his warframe.

"I thought I was past this." Dust said after a moment. "I really did."

"It's part of you." Iriana said softly. "Part of what makes you who you are. A horrible part, but part. If… If we did excise the memories, you would still have the feelings." He laid a gentle arm around her and offered support as _she_ started to cry. "That girl… I…"

"We cannot save everyone, Healer." Dust said sadly. "No matter how hard we try. To… To try… That way lies true madness."

"She was innocent. She was starting to trust." Iriana said softly.

"Part was an act, Healer." Dust said with a sigh. "She was going to try to escape again. She is not stupid, she is just… not all there." He jerked as his helmet come chimed. "Yes?"

"We need you and Iriana in Medical." Jasmina said in a soft, worried tone. "We found her. She is alive, but… hurt."

"On our way." Dust said, rising and helping Iriana to rise. They moved out together, neither looking back.


	6. Chapter 6

**Ignorance**

Dust managed to maintain his composure when they arrived in Medical. Iriana let out a gasp, but then her mien became professional as Aeron met them and guided them to where Brownie lay on her side on an exam table, surrounded by medical personnel. The docs moved to block the table, but both Dust and Iriana had seen.

"_**Tell me you caught him**__._" Iriana grated out with a savagery totally unlike the kind and generous healer.

"Two is tracking him through the ducts. She is… angry. She found the poor girl in the first medical ward we went into." Jasmina said with a snarl that Brownie herself wouldn't have been able to better. "The colony is locked down. He isn't getting out of this. If it takes us _years_, we will ferret him out of his ratholes." Her quiet voice was a feral promise.

Dust barely heard them as he made his slow way to the table. Everyone made way for him. Even Jasmina stepped aside as he came close, his hand slowly moving down to touch the still human woman's cheek. He was careful to avoid her scalp. What was left of it. Her hair had been shorn off and… Her skull lay open in three places, covered in clear bio plastic, but it was easy to see the deep indentions that had been made into her brain matter. He bowed his head slowly.

"How bad?" Someone asked in Dust's voice. That couldn't be his voice. It couldn't. No one could be that calm, looking at the tubes that been run into the woman's mouth and…other places. Iriana stepped forward and the other medics melted from her path as well. She perused the readouts for a moment and then sighed.

"The…sampling didn't touch the portions of her brain that handle life support." Iriana said, rage surging and receding in her tone. "She is comatose. An induced coma. There are no nerve endings inside the brain, so… If we heal the damage quickly, she won't have any pain when she wakes."

"Healer." One of the doctors said softly. "Our orders are to…"

"You _touch_ her and one of these Warriors will _kill_ you. I won't stop them." Iriana said just as quietly, but suddenly the room was silent. "What _are_ we?" Iriana asked, tears starting to fall. "_What are we_? If we can hurt an innocent such as this poor woman… because we _can_? Are we no better than the _Corpus_?" She demanded. "This is the kind of thing _they_ would do! Taking what is wanted with no worry about the cost to others." She said, slumping and stepping back. "Are we Tenno or Corpus?" She asked through her tears.

"We need to…" The doc took a step forward, but froze as Dust interposed himself between the doctor and Iriana, and thus between the doctor and the table. The Ash did not draw any of his weapons, did not make _any_ threatening moves, but the doctor slowly retreated. Aeron moved to stand beside him and Jasmina as well. None of them went for weapons, but the thought was obvious. The only way to the hurt woman was through the warframe clad Warriors. Something no one _sane_ wanted to try.

"This is our responsibility." Jasmina said softly. "The Warriors are responsible for bringing this poor woman here. If you want to kill her, you have to go through us first."

"She is suffering!" The doctor said with a snap. "Isn't it merciful to end that?"

"She _wasn't_." Dust countered. "Not until she was taken and put into a cage. Then abducted and experimented on." His voice did not change inflection, did not make any moves at all, but every medical person took a step back from him. "Iriana?" He asked.

"She is… stable." Iriana said softly. "The tubes are… maintenance. Feeding, air, water, waste." Her glare swept the room again. "She wasn't intended to move from wherever you found her, Jasmina."

"We found her in a surgical suite in the lower levels, the ones that were sealed off after Serene's… escapades." Jasmina snorted, a sound that held little amusement. "Place hadn't been cleaned in a while. Only clean spot was the table we found her on."

"We need to get her out of here." Iriana said softly. "Somewhere safe."

"Look, we have our orders…" The doctor started again, but was interrupted.

"_Get in there!_" An irate female voice sounded and a battered Oberon warframe flew into the room. Literally _flew_. He hit the ground with a crash and stayed down. Wise of him as all three _other_ warframes had drawn weapons when Redi had appeared. A Banshee followed him in. A _furious_ Banshee. "Show _everyone_ how tough and strong you are, you filthy piece of _crap_!" Two did not scream. The sheer force of her voice was worse than any scream. _She_ had a weapon in hand, her Paris was drawn and an arrow nocked. "You are not torturing a **human** _now_! Please! _Please_ show me how tough you are!" She demanded as she drew, her bow steady at full extension. The Oberon didn't move. Wise of him. If he did, he would die.

"Two?" Jasmina asked, the muzzle of her Soma not moving from it's target. "Where did you find him?" Her tone was mild. Kind of. The same way a cobra's hiss was mild.

"He was _trying_ to get to a ship." Two said with a sour snort of amusement. "I am afraid his sample case took a Kunai." The regret in her words was mocking.

"Those samples were…" Redi started, then screamed as Two let fly. The arrow transfixed the Oberon's arm, pinning it to the floor. Before his scream had finished echoing, she had another arrow ready. "I can _explain!_" He screamed again as Two kicked him on the arm where the arrow protruded.

"_Whatever_ he has to say will be a _lie_." Dust said into the sudden silence that fell when Redi stopped screaming. "A half-truth, an evasion or a lie. It is what he _does_. We need to get Brownie somewhere safe."

"I can…" Redi started to say and Two kicked him, hard enough that his warframe groaned at the impact.

"Shut. Up." Two commanded.

"Right." Jasmina said with a nod. "Aeron?"

"Transport is available." The sniper said coldly, focused on the Oberon. The Snipetron should have seemed unwieldy at close quarters. There was no sign of it in Aeron's stance. "What about him?"

"Dust?" Jasmina asked after a moment. "Your call." The Oberon made a soft noise of fear, but Dust wasn't looking at him.

"My call?" Dust asked, looking at Jasmina. "No. Not mine. Disable him so he cannot follow. Leave him. He hasn't touched _me_." Now the Ash's gaze fell to the stricken Oberon and his voice turned vicious. "Unfortunately, he is not that _stupid_. He knew I would refuse his touch. He _knows_ I do not want to kill kin. Even him. He knows all of my old weaknesses." He turned his back on the Oberon and nodded to Iriana. "Can we move her?"

"Yes." Iriana said with a sigh. "It's all self-contained. I will get a blanket. I am coming." One of the nurses, the one whose suit Brownie had torn Dust noticed, opened a locker and pulled a blanket out to give to Iriana. The nurse's eyes were glistening as she stepped back.

"Wouldn't have it any other way." Jasmina said with a nod. She sighed as Redi tried to pull the arrow out of his arm. "Two? Disable this scum."

"Gladly." Two said as she aimed. Redi barely had time to scream as she shot one, two more arrows. Both went through his warframe, pinning his thighs to the ground. He wouldn't _die_, not with the innate regeneration of his warframe. But he was _not_ moving any time soon. "And just so all you medics know…" Two said in a far more normal tone that she had since she had arrived. "My arrows will remain until we are away and I have telltales set, so don't even _try_ to help him until we are gone."

"What are you _doing_?" An authoritative voice demanded. All eyes turned to the door that Redi and flown through and the robed form that entered through it more sedately than the Oberon had. The bearded Tenno Elder blanched at the scene. Four guards followed the elder, but all had their weapons holstered. Wise of them. "What is going on here?"

"Did _you_ vote to euthanize this poor woman, Elder Mavri?" Iriana asked, hurt and betrayal in her voice as she carefully wrapped the blanket around the still form on the table. "This hurt human woman?"

"The report said she was suffering." The Tenno Elder said slowly, not moving at all. None of the weapons drawn in the room were aimed at him, but several were ready. "It seemed the merciful thing to do. What has…? What happened? I heard of a security alert, then nothing except weapons drawn _here_."

"This one…" Jasmina kicked the shaking Oberon on the floor, eliciting a small cry as he fell over and the arrows twisted in his flesh. "…tortured the woman that our colleague Dust brought in." Elder Mavri gasped, staring at the still form and then at the Oberon. "He hurt her. Perhaps we cannot save her. But that does not mean we shouldn't _try_. Our first duty, Elder…" Jasmina bowed her head. "As Dust reminded me… is to _protect_ the remnants of humanity. We failed her and she has paid the price for our failure. We will _not_ fail her again." Dust, Aeron, Two and Iriana all nodded with Jasmina's words.

"What did he _do_?" Mavri asked, stunned.

"He took bits of her _brain matter_ out." Iriana said with a growl. "I can only _guess_ why. As Dust says, we cannot trust anything _he_ says."

"Elder!" Redi screamed. "I thought…" He squealed a horrible sound of pain as Two stepped on the spot where his legs met his torso and dug in her heel. All of the males in the room except Dust and Aeron winced at that.

"I don't _care_ what he thought." Jasmina said as the stricken Oberon's squeals tapered off. "He had no right to do that. Sequester her, yes. Maybe euthanize her if _all_ of the Elders and _all_ of the healers agreed. Iriana was not consulted by the way. But… Experiment on her? He kidnapped her, put her in a coma. Did this."

"Is that true?"Mavri asked Iriana, his face going white. "I was… told you agreed."

"I might have, eventually, Elder." Iriana said with a sigh. "This poor woman has suffered enough. But… I was _not_ consulted. Indeed, I was _barred_ from assisting. I was told that I was… compromised." She made the last word an epithet.

"Compromised…" Mavri said with a wince. Then he cursed as well, a vile curse more suited to a dockhand than a Tenno Elder. Then… he bowed to Jasmina. "You will ward and tend her?" Jasmina nodded gravely. "You have my blessing to go then. Not that you need it, but let's not have Karl's people…ah… forcibly _extract_ anyone today." He glanced at Aeron who nodded.

"We are keeping it low key." Aeron said with a nod as Iriana finished wrapping the sleeping woman. "Want me to…?" He trailed off as Dust picked up the still form and moved to the door. "Never mind." He said with a snort as Jasmina and Iriana moved with him to follow. Two remained for a moment.

"Elder…" Two sounded sad and sick. "That woman is hurt. By whatever was done to her before and by one of ours now." The Elder nodded and the gaze he leveled on the slumped Oberon was fulminating. "What have we come to, Elder Mavri?" Two begged. "Using a human as a lab rat. I thought we were better than this."

"So did I." Mavri said, then turned on his heel and waved for Two to come with him. "So did I, Two." They both ignored the sick sounds of pain coming from behind them. "I will investigate, you have my word."

"I trust you, Elder Mavri." Two said sadly. "I saw her… like that and I… I never wanted kin _dead_ before, Elder. I understand Dust's feeling now. There was no malice. No… emotion at _all_ in what was done. It was meticulously planned and clinically executed to draw suspicion away until he could do what he did to her. It was… planned." Mavri tensed and Two nodded. "We have to be better than that." She begged. "We have to."

"I will find out what happened, Two." Mavri promised. "And when I do, Karl will be the _first_ to know."

"It's something to do with Dust." Two said in an undertone, glancing to where Dust strode with his burden. "What happened to Dust. I would bet on it. Redi expected Dust to find and attack him. Not me. He was…surprised to see _me_."

"How badly did you hurt him?" Mavri asked with a grunt.

"Arrows in the arm and both thighs." Two said with a nod. "Before? I bounced him off a few walls with Sonic Booms after I disabled his weapons with Kunai." Mavri looked at her sidelong and she shrugged. "Not hard to do if you strike from ambush and keep him knocked down. I was…irritated."

"Maybe not hard for _you_." Mavri said, a small amount of humor surfacing. "I will find out what I can. I swear it, Tenno Two. As Jasmina says, we are supposed to _protect_ humans, not _experiment_ on them."

"I don't think he saw her as human, Elder." Iriana said with a sigh. "Some of the other medics were… remarkably…" She trailed off as the Elder looked at her.

"What, Healer?" Elder Mavri asked quietly. "Some of the other medics were… what?"

"Contemptuous of her." Iriana said with a wince. "I heard a couple say she was stupid, another said she was brain dead. Useless. One… made a comment asking if any humans were not brain dead." Mavri winced at that and Iriana nodded. "I… it seemed like idle talk, but… I don't know."

"Most of the med staff are good people as you well know, Healer." Iriana nodded to Mavri's words. "But we do share number of traits with humans. Unfortunately, bigotry seems to be one of them."

"She is different." Iriana said with a snarl. "Not sick. Not broken. Not brain dead. _Different_. She was… She was opening up a bit. I am betting that is done."

"Can you… make her forget?" Mavri asked. Iriana glanced at him and he flushed. "It is a valid question."

"On a normal human?" Iriana said with a grimace. "Probably. On her? Even before that scum messed up her brain? I wouldn't know where to start. We will be running a lot of scans. If… If it will help her, I will consider it. We owe her any ease we can give her."

"Healer." Mavri asked slowly. "If it was imposed... Who did it?" Iriana did not want to answer him. "Healer?" He pressed.

"We don't have enough information, Elder." Iriana said with a shrug. "But our techniques _could_ do it." Mavri and Two both stiffened. "We will be looking for traces. Corpus could, but their ways are cruder, we would have seen traces even on the basic scans. If the Infested can… we have massive problems."

"Agreed." Mavri said with a sigh. "Keep me informed. Just me." He said with a snap. "I will be cleaning house and…talking to Redi."

"One thing, Elder." Two said as the others neared the portal that led to the landing bay. "Iriana, I'll be right along." Iriana nodded and hurried her steps. Elder Mavri looked at Two who nodded. "When I caught him, Redi said something about Tenno being a 'Master Race'." Mavri stilled and Two nodded. "I am not sure exactly what he meant by that. I have records of what he said. I… um…" She shrugged. "I was… rather angry."

"What –exactly- did he say, Two?" Mavri asked, worried. Two paused and pulled up her video files.

"He said 'You will not stand in the way of the Master Race', Elder." Two said with a gulp. "Then, 'The Tenno will find their true calling.'" She shook her head. "That makes me _very_ nervous, not sure why."

"You may not remember. It is ancient history that should have stayed _buried_." Mavri said with a stony look. "I do. We will not let it happen again." He keyed his com, ordering Redi's arrest, confinement and the removal of the Tenno's warframe. The cavalcade of warriors had arrived at a ship now and Aeron entered, the others paused as they waited for him to get things ready. Mavri nodded to the others. "Tenno Jasmina, Tenno Dust… You heard?"

"Please tell me that is not what it sounds like." Jasmina said softly. "I studied Earth history. It was…my passion."

"I hope not." Mavri said sadly. "But where there is bigotry, there is ignorance and the low minded can flourish. All it would take is one charismatic leader to…repeat past mistakes."

"What are you talking about?" Iriana asked, confused and worried.

"Let's just say that there are portions of human history that should _never_ be revisited." Mavri said with a sigh. Jasmina nodded in emphatic agreement. "I will run a full investigation and I will keep Karl and you in the loop, Jasmina."

"I will be running my own." Jasmina said with a sigh. "I hope it is just madness speaking. But we cannot count on that."

"I don't know what you are talking about." Dust said, shaking his head. "I don't…remember if I knew. But the Tenno known as Redi lies as easily as breathing. Be very careful, Elder Mavri."

"I will." Mavri said with a nod. "Take care of her."

"I will." Dust promised as Aeron reappeared and led the way into the ship. Iriana followed close as Aeron guided Dust to an alcove that had been reset for a sleeping human. Dust laid Brownie down and Iriana bustled close to help as they secured her for flight. "How long will she sleep?"

"Until we wake her or her body fails." Iriana said sadly, gently rubbing the sleeping human woman's forehead. "We need to get her wounds healed before we wake her."

"Amelia is apprised, Healer." Aeron said with a nod. Jasmina and Two entered the ship and a rumble sounded as it powered up. "Let's go." He said as they all found secured positions. Iriana had a seat, the warframes moved to alcoves where they could be secured for transit.

"Do I want to _know_?" Iriana asked. "_Master Race_?"

"No." Jasmina said flatly "You don't."


	7. Chapter 7

**Mindfulness**

Dust stood as he had since the docs had taken Brownie into surgery. He stood against the wall of the dojo, a silent shadow. He still wore his warframe, but he had turned in all of his weapons on arrival. Now? He had nowhere to go. This wasn't his place, this huge gray and white walled facility. Too many corridors, too many memories of places like this one that… didn't quite fit. He paused as a voice sounded nearby, one he didn't know.

"Tenno Dust?" The speaker was a Tenno in a Mag warframe. She seemed… tentative. Odd that. "You okay?" He shrugged and she stepped closer. "I mean… It's been two hours and you haven't _moved_."

"Nowhere to go." Dust grunted.

"Oh no." The Mag said with a sigh. "You are not going to pull _that_. Karl's orders." Dust turned to stare at her and the Mag shrugged, but she had a grin in her voice. "My orders are, and I quote: 'Make sure he has something to do besides brood.' Sword or gun?" She asked.

"Uh, what?" Dust asked intelligently.

"I need to work on both, and I have time for range and sword drill." She looked at him. "Karl says you are a master."

"Karl is…" Dust shrugged. "…not always right."

"Who _is_?" The Mag asked with a lilting laugh. "I am Karen."

"I…should stay." Dust said with a wince, looking at the door to the surgical ward with it's red 'do not enter' sign lit. "No offense."

"And do what?" Karen asked calmly. Dust looked at her and she nodded. "From what the others tell me, you would stand there until the docs come out. As long as it takes. Five hours or _fifty_, you would stand right there." There was honest admiration in her voice and it made Dust feel uncomfortable.

"I am not special." Dust said with a wince. "Just a survivor."

"I know." Karen said, her tone suddenly contrite. "I apologize, Tenno. I have training time scheduled, and the others thought you could use some time on a range or in a salle." Dust thought about that, he hadn't been in a formal salle -a sword training chamber- for some time.

"I…could." Dust admitted. "They will notify me when anything changes. One way or another." Karen nodded, although his words had been a statement, not a question.

"Will you join me?" Karen asked nodding towards the door.

"Sure." Dust said, although his heart wasn't really in it. Karen nodded and started off. Dust followed her. "What do you need to practice?" He asked.

"I am having difficulty thinking spherically." Karen admitted. "It's…not something I was taught." Dust looked at her. "My…initiation was…different. Recent." She seemed to wilt a bit under his scrutiny and he shook his head.

"Sister, you wear a warframe." Dust said quietly. "The only person who can decide if you are worthy of it… is you. No one can take it from you once it bonds to you. You know this." She nodded a little.

"So everyone says." Karen said just as quietly as they stepped towards an elevator. "I just… I am not improving." Dust tilted his head and she shrugged. "I mean, _I_ don't see any improvement."

"We rarely see our own improvements." Dust replied evenly. "What do your instructors say?"

"To keep practicing." Karen said, sounding dejected.

"The only way to get better at _anything_ is to practice, Sister Karen." Dust said with a nod. "Yes, it gets old hearing that. But I still find faults with my own techniques that I try to correct. Perfection is the goal."

"It is not the end, but the journey." Karen said, quoting the Tenno code and Dust nodded approvingly. "A Tenno's reach should always exceed her grasp."

"Indeed." Dust paused as the elevator door opened and a Frost prime stepped out, but paused as he saw Karen and Dust. A Sayrn followed him, her posture protective. She stepped back, remaining out of the conversation.

"Karen?" The Frost Prime asked. "What word?"

"Nothing new, Olim." Karen said with a sigh. "I hope we hear something soon."

"Patience, sister." The Frost Prime said with a nod. "A hard to attain virtue that I am still coming to terms with myself." He paused and looked at Dust. "Dust? Is that you?" The Frost Prime asked, incredulous.

"Hello Olim." Dust said with a nod. He had known Olim when the other had worn an Ash warframe. Both had worked together, if not too much. "Lots of changes I see."

"Yeah, _tell_ me about it." Olim said with a slightly silly groan. "Lots of work to do. If she can be helped, Dust… Alicia, Amelia and Iriana will put it to rights."

"We can hope." Dust said with a nod. "Good to see you again, brother."

"And you, brother." Olim held out a hand and with only a moment's hesitation, Dust took it. A feeling of something wafted over him and Olim made a noise of regret. "Sorry. We cannot be too careful."

"Was it true?" Dust asked softly. "I heard rumors of the Enemy returning."

"We don't know whether they are returning or not. We ran into a nasty AI virus." Olim said with a sigh. "But we _will_ be ready. Karen, you will come by when you are done with training? For testing?"

"Ah… I don't think…" Karen stammered, but trailed off as Olim shook his head.

"Karen, the ability to do what I do was rare." Olim said with a shrug. "You may have it. If so, we need to know. It will not be pleasant. But better to know." Karen shrugged but nodded. "I will expect you before third meal."

"I will be there." Karen promised. Olim nodded to them both and left. As soon as he was gone, she slumped a bit. "I don't… I don't want to do what he does."

"You think _he _does?" Dust asked softly as they entered the elevator. "The Cyberlancer way is not an easy path. I knew a couple." His memory was fragmented, but he knew he had. Those fragments of memory brought grief up. He took a moment to quell it. Karen stood in silence, lost in her own thoughts. "What troubles you, sister?"

"I can't see it." Karen said sadly. "My instructors are great. I just can't…quite see what they are getting at." She slumped a bit. "I know it is frustrating them. It is frustrating _me_."

"What –exactly- is the problem?" Dust asked as the elevator stopped and Karen led off.

"No-mind." Karen said softly. "I get the idea. I know what it is supposed to be. A focus on what must be done. But I…can't…seem to get my mind to obey."

"Maybe you are trying too hard." Dust replied.

"What?" Karen asked, incredulous. She stopped in front of a room marked 'Training'. The door was green, unlocked.

"It's hard to explain." Dust said after a moment's thought. "It is easier to show." Karen looked at him and shrugged.

They entered the room together. Inside a series of training dummies, some looking very much the worse for wear, were arranged against one wall. Another wall held racked weapons of various kinds, both live steel and training versions. Another was a solid mirror for the entire length of the room. The final wall had a huge lotus, the symbol of the Royal House of Orokin and a smaller yin-yang symbol painted on it. A Tenno in an Excalibur Prime warframe stood waiting for them. He carried both a training Skana and a live steel Skana.

"Will." Karen said bowing to the Excalibur. Dust did likewise, his head remaining up, on guard. The Excalibur Prime nodded to both. Karen turned to Dust, her posture confused. "What do you mean, 'show me'?" She asked.

"It's easier with blades." Dust said, then turned to Will. "If we may, Training Master?"

"What do you wish to do?" Will asked calmly.

"I wish to _show_ her what 'No-Mind' is." Dust said equably. Will looked at him and Dust nodded. "Not steel."

"Okay." Will said with a nod. "Karen, fetch two training Skana." She bowed quickly and darted to the wall where weapons were racked. "Don't hurt her." The Excalibur warned in an undertone.

"_I_ am not going to strike." Dust retorted quietly. Will stared at him and then nodded, just a little. "When she extends?"

Will nodded again. Karen stepped back, two plastic Skana in hand. She held out both to Dust who took one without even looking at it. He stepped back the proper distance and sank into seiza. Karen did the same after glancing at Will.

"Clear your mind, sister." Dust said softly. "Think of your hallway. It is empty. Calm. Quiet. Still." Karen stayed where she was, her posture relaxing a bit. Then the Ash was on his feet, his Skana in hand. Karen was facing him, her stance upright and nearly perfect as Dust moved. She readied her… She spun in place, her Skana deflecting the stroke that Will had just leveled at her back with his training sword. She deflected it perfectly, her sword coming back to ready as Will stepped back.

"_That_, sister…" Dust said, his sword still in a ready position as Karen stared at her blade and then at Will. "…was No-Mind. You did not think. You acted." But then he paused as she slumped, her sword drooping. Dust shook his head.

"Karen." Will chided her.

"I…" Karen jumped, her blade coming back up to a ready position. "Aw no…" She said with feeling. "Not again."

She set herself as Will stalked to her, batting at her blade. But… She _blocked_ his attack and then they were exchanging blows. Strikes came fast and furious, all blocked or dodged. Dust watched carefully as Karen managed to hold her own for almost half a minute before Will's superior technique managed to find a hole in her guard and slam her blade from her hands. She stood still as his blade came up to slap the side of her helmet.

"_Never_ lower your guard to an enemy, Karen." Will said sternly. Then he jerked as she _charged_ him! For a moment, it seemed she might actually gain the advantage. His reach and length of blade was a _dis_advantage in close. But then Will managed a pommel strike from his training Skana. The strike caught her in the middle of her abdomen and _seemed_ gentle, but Karen gave a cry and crumpled to the ground. Will stood over her for a moment. "Not bad, Karen." Will said quietly, sheathing his sword. "You suckered me in nicely."

"I am _never_ going to beat you." Karen said sadly. "Not if I had a _million_ years to train."

"If _that_ is what you believe, Karen." Dust said before Will could. "Then you _never_ will." Will looked at Dust and then, with a nod, stepped back. "Pick up your sword." Karen did as instructed and Dust stood to one side. "What did you do when Will attacked you from behind?"

"I blocked it." Karen said, confused. "Why? What did I do wrong?"

"Karen." Dust chided her gently. "You didn't do anything wrong. What were you thinking when you blocked his attack?"

"I…" Karen paused and then seemed to stiffen. "I…"

"You were not." Dust said approvingly. "Cultivating that ability will take some time. But you do have it. Believe in yourself sister. Stand ready." He said quietly and cast Invisibility. Will did not move as Dust sidled to the side, flanking Karen. "Defend yourself." He swung with further warning, and his strike went true, catching her in the back. She gave a cry and rolled forward as he followed up but Karen managed to get her blade up before he struck her again. Then he vanished again. Karen stiffened, but then, slowly relaxed and Dust nodded approvingly. This time when he swung, her blade as there before it impacted. He vanished again, moving to the side, but again, when he struck, she was ready. "You are reading the magnetic fields, aren't you?" He asked, curious as he stepped back.

"Somewhat." Karen said a bit sheepishly. "It's not…clear." She did keep her blade up this time. "I feel…" She trailed off.

"What do you feel, Sister Karen?" Dust asked with a nod.

"Light." Karen said slowly. "I feel light." Will struck again without warning and this time, she shed his blade and stepped back, her guard up and solid. "Is that… what it is supposed to feel like?" Her voice was bemused.

"End match." Will said formally and both Dust and Karen sheathed their blades. Then he did. "It is different for each of us, Karen. But yes. You did it." He said with a nod.

"Thank you." Karen said, still in that odd, bemused tone. "I… need to think on this." She looked at Will. "Five hundred?"

"Three hundred." Will said with a nod. "Nice trap." She bowed her head quickly, moved to replace her sword on the rack, moved to a free spot on the floor and dropped to start pushups. Will looked at Dust.

"She has it." Dust said quietly with a nod of his own. "She lacks confidence. She wasn't born Tenno." His words were not a question.

"Is that a problem?" Will asked, his tone cool. Dust just looked at him and Will shrugged. "It is for some."

"_Some_ cannot find their rear ends with both hands and a _map_, brother." Dust said with a snort. "May I ask for a sparring session?"

"I don't know." Will said as he stepped to the side. "_May_ you?"

With no other warning whatsoever, Will's live steel Skana was coming at Dust, who retreated a step and parried with his training blade. Dust had known the moment he stepped in here that this would be a test. He found… he relished it.

His blade was hard plastic, capable of parrying the Skana as long as Will did not get a solid strike in with the edge. Will moved with the trained grace of the master swordsman he was. Dust as well was a master, if of a slightly different sword tradition. Both knew the moves, both flowed with the solid precision that was the hallmark of Tenno masters. Around and around they danced, each trying various counters, dodges and generally getting the feel for their opponent.

When it came, the mistake was tiny. Will actually slipped, just a little and Dust pounced, his blade licking out to disarm his opponent. If he had held live steel, he might have taken Will's arm off at the wrist. But _just_ before it could impact, Dust found himself airborne. He rolled from the leg sweep that Will had suckered him into and came up, but just a millisecond too late. Dust froze in place, the edge of Will's blade was at Dust's neck.

"Your bout." Dust said with a nod. Will stepped back, Dust rose and they shared a bow of equals. He sheathed his blade. "Nice feint, that slip."

"You nearly had me." Will said as he stepped back again, his blade returning to his back. "You are as good with a Skana as they say." Dust shrugged, but applause stopped them both. Dust turned to see a Rhino standing in the doorway, Karen standing beside him. Karl was clapping quietly.

"Not bad. Not bad at _all_." The Rhino's deep voice boomed. "Will? What do you say?"

"If I hadn't taken him by surprise and if he had a live steel Skana?" Will said with a nod. "He would have won."

"I _highly_ doubt that." Dust disagreed. "That slip looked genuine."

"That was _incredible_!" Karen nearly gushed. "I have a long way to go with weapons training." She said, awe in her voice. Dust and Will looked at one another and Dust spoke.

"Karen, you have made an inaccurate statement." Dust said quietly. Karen paused, looking at him and he nodded. He touched the hilt of the training blade that he wore. "This is a tool. A rifle or pistol are tools, no more." Karen stared at him and he sighed. "Karen, the only _weapon_ is one that resides in your head. Take the tools away and a Tenno is still a weapon."

"Of course." Karen said, not understanding. "A Tenno wears a warframe."

"Karen…" Will said softly. "A warframe is a tool too." Karen gave a noise of confusion and he sighed. "Just think about it." The younger Tenno nodded, then bowed, to Will and to Dust.

"Go on, Karen." The Rhino said with a nod. "I need to talk to Dust."

"At once, Karl Sensei." Karen said, bowing to him as well before literally running from the room. Dust was not the only one shaking his head a little at the girl's nervous energy.

"She will get it." Karl said with a nod. "Dust? Walk with me?"

"A moment, Tenno Karl." Dust said with a nod. He bowed to Will, who bowed back. Then he walked to the wall of weapons and laid his training sword out in it's place, sighing at the beating it had taken. "I will need to come back and work on this."

"Anytime." Will said quietly, respect in his tone. Dust bowed to him again and strode to where Karl waited. "Karl." He said with a nod.

"Come on." Karl said with a return nod and led the way from the salle. "We are heading back to Medical."

"Brownie?" Dust asked, careful with his tone. This was the clan leader he was speaking to after all. Besides, Karl was a friend.

"She came through fine." Karl said quietly. "You are…attached?"

"Me and Iriana, yes.' Dust said with a nod. "We are supposed to protect humans, but she attacked me. I needed to find out why, so…" He shrugged. "She is my responsibility, but… Yes. I am attached."

"We will keep an eye on both of you." Karl said as they waited for the elevator. "But I agree. We protect humans. What was done to her was…wrong. That it was done by Tenno is worse." Dust nodded. "I have quarters set up for her. And you."

"Thank you." Dust said quietly.

"Anyone who can fight _Will_ to a standstill with a training blade against live steel I want to stay on the _good_ side of." Karl said with a laugh. "Besides… We understand one another. That girl is a victim."

"We might have to put her back." Dust said with a wince. "She may not be able to survive away from where I found her."

"I know."


	8. Chapter 8

**Compassion**

Dust stood back and watched Brownie sleep. The room that she had been moved to was as far from normal Tenno dojo quarters as it was possible for Karl's clan to make in a short period of time. The walls had colorful holographic paintings on them. The floor was a carpet like material, soft but relatively easy to clean. The bed was warm and soft and was set up to be so without anything that could be removed or used as a weapon. All in all, not even remotely a padded cell, but as safe as one. Dust jerked as the woman on the bed cried. It sounded…almost like words. His eyes narrowed under his helmet as he tried to discern them. None were clear, except one sounded like 'No'.

He stopped any reaction as Brownie sat up straight in the bed with a wild cry of fear, her eyes wide as she stared around. She jerked and looked down at herself, at the short patient gown that covered her for modesty purposes. She grabbed at the diaper that was wrapped around her waist, but the covering was well attached and locked in place. She gave up after a moment of trying to get it off, to Dust's intense gratitude. His sense of smell was enhanced in his warframe and tending to her messes had been…unpleasant. Then her hands came up to her head and… She gave another sharp cry as she felt her shorn head. She slumped and tears started falling.

"Easy, Brownie." Dust said softly. She obviously hadn't seen him, despite his standing in full view. She jumped a full foot off the bed and staggered as she landed on her feet. Her hands were up in a protective gesture as she stared at Dust's warframe. "It's okay." He crooned. "I am here. You are okay." Her face contorted in a grimace of fear and pain. Then she was running at him. He did not move as she threw her arms around him, hugged him tight and bawled. He took her in a slow, gentle grip, holding her easily as she clung to him. "It's okay."

He made sure that the very gentle pressure he exerted on her body would not hurt her as he lifted her and carried her back to the bed. The docs had promised that Brownie would not feel any pain in her head, that the repairs they had done to her cranium would be undetectable. It was the internal damage that could not be repaired easily, if at all. They couldn't do much for her hair, not and leave room if they _did_ need to fix anything, but they had provided a head covering for her once Dust had her calmed down. For now, though, Dust just held the crying human, trying to soother her non-verbally. It seemed to work. After a time, she relaxed and he let her extricate herself from his arms. She sat back on the bed, staring up at his helmet. She made a soft noise that he interpreted as an interrogative.

"I am not leaving." Dust said as he stepped back. The fear in her eyes made him stop and he shook his head. "I am not leaving, Brownie." Dust repeated. He put deeds to words, sitting in sieza near the wall. "See? I am not going anywhere."

She made an unintelligible noise and slid off the bed, sidling on all fours towards him. Dust remained still as she reached him and slowly extended a hand to touch his warframe's arm. Quick as thought, Dust rapped her knuckles gently and before she could even jerk back, he was back in his sitting position. From her quizzical expression, it hadn't hurt her, but she couldn't figure out where the sudden rap had come from. She stared around and then gave a yip as he tapped a finger against her side. She spun back to glare at him, her face a mix of worry, fear…something else. Anticipation?

"You need some downtime." Dust said quietly. "You need to relax." His hand trailed to the floor and spun in aimless circles. Then it paused and jerked a little bit as Brownie slowly sank to a crouch, all of her focus now on the slowly moving hand. He walked his fingers towards he and then, as if his hand were an animal that ad suddenly seen a predator, he made it stop and then skitter away. Brownie did as he had hoped, she pounced on his hand, grabbing it and pulling it to her mouth, only to groan in frustration as it escaped her grasp. "You don't want to bite my warframe." Dust said with a shake of his head. "But…"

His other hand came up with a bottle. Iriana had set a number of supplies in a small bag that she had attached to his warframe's back. Brownie stared at the bottle and then lay on her belly, her entire body language pleading. He held it out to her and she stared at it, unsure. He mimed picking it up and drinking from it. He laid it on the ground and she sank down -nearly copying his seiza he noted with a grin- as she stared with a laser like focus at the bottle. She reached out and touched it, then grabbed it when it did not move. She explored the bottle with her fingers, bringing it close to her nose to smell. Then she jerked as she squeezed the wrong spot and got a face full of milk.

Dust was trying not to laugh as Brownie, obviously distressed, tried to wipe her face with the bottle and got _more_ milk on her face.

"Hang on." He said and Brownie froze. He wiped the mess off her face carefully with a small napkin he pulled from the bag. Then he put the napkin back and then took her hands in his. He oriented them carefully and moved the bottle to the right spot, the proper end near her teeth. She looked at him as he let go. "Go ahead." He encouraged her.

She put the bottle to her teeth and a smile of pleasure came over her features as she drank. The mixture had been formulated carefully, a mix of milk and several vitamins. While she had been unconscious, the docs had given her fluids and some nutrients, but she was still badly malnourished and dehydrated. She quickly drained the bottle and her face was perplexed as she released it and looked at it. She could get no more from it. She looked at Dust who nodded. He pulled another bottle from the bag and held it out to her. She grabbed it quickly, dropping the empty one in the process. She was so fixated on drinking that she likely didn't even see him pick up the used bottle, crush it in one hand and put the remains back in the bag. He wasn't going to leave anything lying around that might be used as a weapon or could be any kind of safety hazard.

"Dust?" Iriana's voice came over his helmet line.

"She is drinking." He said quietly. Brownie looked at him, but did not stop. "Might want to wait until she stops."

"Right." Iriana was planning to come in, introduce herself. She was wearing a bodysuit instead of medical attire, and everyone hoped the woman would react better to Iriana. If so, if they could get her calm and _keep_ her that way, Dust wouldn't have to stay in his warframe around her. Everyone was very worried about hurting the woman if she did something unexpected.

Dust looked to where Brownie was playing with the bottle, turning it over in her hands. "All done?"

She jerked and dropped the bottle at his voice. It was almost as if she had forgotten he was there. She gave a cry of fear, but Dust just crooned to her and she relaxed as he picked up the bottle and returned it to the bag.

"Someone wants to meet you, Brownie." Dust said gently as she sat, looking at him. "She has helped you, but never met you. I am here." He promised her as she relaxed further. She obviously did not understand his word, but the tone was gentle and she calmed. "Come ahead, Iriana."

"Brownie?" Iriana's worried voice preceded her into the room. Brownie froze and recoiled from where the door opened behind Dust and then gave a squeak and grabbed hold of Dust as Iriana stepped in and the door hissed shut again. "Easy, girl."

"Easy." Dust crooned as well and Brownie relaxed little as nothing happened. "This is Iriana. She has helped you too. She wants to help you." Brownie cringed as Iriana stepped closer, but Dust's arm was around her and she seemed to melt into it, taking strength from him. "Easy, Brownie." Dust said with a nod. "She won't hurt you."

"No, I won't." Iriana said gently as she sank to her knees, just out of arms reach. "See?" She held up empty hands so Brownie could see them, then laid them on her knees. She smiled, careful to keep her teeth covered. Brownie stared at her, and then at Dust.

Both of the Tenno waited as Brownie thought about what to do. Then she slowly released the warframe she had been keeping a death grip on and slid across the floor towards the Healer. The human woman reached out with a hesitant hand and touched Iriana's closest one. Iriana turned her hand slowly so Brownie could see it was empty. Brownie was shaking with fear as she laid her hand in Iriana's and the Healer's hand curled up to slowly stroke the woman's.

"Easy, Brownie." Iriana said with a small smile. "It's okay." She promised.

Brownie stared at the hand she held and then up at Iriana's eyes. Then she seemed to wilt, curling up on herself. She was sobbing as she hugged her knees tight, rocking back and forth. Iriana slowly moved her hand to touch the sobbing woman's shoulder. Then, she rose little and moved to embrace the crying woman who just kept crying. But then her arms were around Iriana holding the Tenno healer. Dust watched very carefully, but Brownie wasn't hostile. Indeed, she was barely coherent as Iriana rubbed her shaven skull and soothed the crying woman with gentle caresses and soft words. Finally, Brownie gave her a squeeze and Iriana let her go. Brownie sat back on the floor and paused, staring down at herself.

"Made a mess, did you?" Iriana asked with a smile. "_That_ we can fix. Come on, girl." She took the young human woman's hands and eased Brownie to her feet, guiding her to the bed. She guided Brownie to sit down and then started the work of changing the woman's diaper. Brownie watched, her face curious, but…in the abstract, as if it wasn't really any concern of hers. In just a few minutes, Iriana was done. "We need to keep it locked on for now, Brownie." Iriana said as she sat down beside the girl. "If we can get you to do it for yourself, so much the better." Her voice did not hold hope though. Brownie seemed to hear the despair that Iriana was trying to hide and snuggled close to the healer. "Hey…" Iriana said with an amused smile. "It's okay. We won't let anything else happen to you."

"No, we won't." Dust agreed as he watched the two women. "How much do you think she is taking in, Iriana?"

"Physical sensations, emotions, the tone of the words." Iriana said as she stroked Brownie's head gently. "She can't understand the _actual_ words." Brownie relaxed on the bed, stroking Iriana's arm idly in return. "Very much a hurt animal."

"Is there _anything_ we can do?" Dust asked after a minute. "I want to do…something. Anything."

"For her?" Iriana said sadly as Brownie relaxed back to the bed and closed her eyes, falling asleep almost immediately. "Probably not. But we can find out more. The problem is the only information available…" She trailed off as Dust hissed softly.

"…is inside Brownie's head." Dust said with a gulp. "How do we get her _permission_ for a mindscan?" He asked, incredulous.

"We can't." Iriana said sadly. "Whatever happened to her before that quack hurt her…" She shook herself as Brownie made a sleepy noise of protest. "Sorry honey." Iriana said softly. "Go back to sleep. It's okay." Brownie made another unintelligible noise and sank back into slumber.

"Her memory center is _trashed_." Dust said when Iriana patted the girl's arm and rose from the bed. "What do you hope to get from it?"

"The human brain is a highly complex organic computer." Iriana said with a shrug. "Maybe we will find nothing. Maybe we will find something. Which right now is a few hundred percent better than we have."

"Okay." Dust said with a nod. "I admit that." His voice was more than bit on the dubious side as Iriana sank into seiza beside him. "And technically, since she is under our protection… Um… Who _would_ we ask for permission?"

"You." Iriana said formally. "And I am."

"_Me?_" Dust exclaimed, then froze as Brownie grumbled in her sleep, then rolled over and subsided. "You cannot be serious."

"Dust." Iriana said softly. "You took responsibility for her. No one is stupid enough to do _anything_ to her without your permission."

"But…" Dust said, then thought hard. Indeed, who _else_ could be considered to be the girl's guardian? He sighed a little. "Yes. She is my responsibility." He shook himself a bit. "How do we do it without alarming her?"

"Well, she needs to be awake." Iriana said, her face serious. "We have mapped enough of her body to know how sedatives will work on her." Dust turned his head to look at her and Iriana winced. "I don't like it any more than you do. But we cannot restrain her or we destroy what little trust we have created. So…"

"What?" Dust demanded softly. "Calming agents?"

"Something along those lines, yes." Iriana said with a scowl. "I don't like it any more than you do. Less, probably. She is a thinking being. One with…difficulty, but a thinking being. Ethically, this is… questionable. But I think it may be our only chance to find out what happened to her. From what I can tell… She is a good soul when she is not scared."

"Yeah." Dust agreed softly, looking at the slumbering human. "Fear does strange things to people, even Tenno who are supposed to be trained to control or use it."

"What we will need to do…" Iriana said with a sigh. "…is get her calm and keep her that way. No sudden changes. No waking up strapped to a table. We take it in stages, try to keep her focused on us as we try to put her under the machine. Good news is she cannot resist the scan, so it won't _hurt_ her."

"Just scare her." Dust said sadly. "I don't like this."

"No one does, Dust." Iriana said sadly. "But you need to face the fact that she is not likely to get any better. That as capable as she currently is… may be as capable as she will _ever_ be."

"I don't believe that." Dust said with a snarl, one he minimized to keep from disturbing the slumbering human woman. "Orokin was a time of miracles. There has to be… something. Some remnant that we can use to help her."

"Dust." Iriana said softly. "Parts of her brain are _gone_. If they were _damaged_, repair would be possible. But… This isn't damage."

"No, this was _theft_." Dust said, bowing his head. "And yes, I agree. We need to find out who did it and _why_. And what that scum Redi was trying to do. Any word from Mavri?"

"No." Iriana said flatly. "They have the slime in custody, but he refuses to talk. Too bad _we_ don't have him. I could _get_ him to talk." The savagery in her tone was totally unlike the normally kind and gentle Healer.

"Healer." Dust said quietly. "Be very careful. You have a right to your anger. We all do. Don't let it win."

"I…" Iriana took a deep breath and then let it out slowly. "You are right. I am angry. This… travesty touches to the heart of every medical professional. What was done to her was done by a medical professional." Dust looked at her and Iriana sighed. "There is no way an amateur could do such a thing without killing her. Not without being the luckiest being in the universe. And it was done more than once." Dust stiffened.

"More than once?" The Ash echoed.

"At least three times." Iriana said sadly. "The last when she was…abducted from the psyche ward. Once by techniques similar to ours. And between those times… once…" She paused and then sighed. "It looked a lot like… Well…" She shook her head.

"Well 'what'?" Dust asked, concerned.

"Dust…" Iriana said, manifestly against her will. "I can't be sure. The damage is old and has mostly healed. But from the traces… It looked like something grew inside her brain and then vanished."

"_Grew?_" Dust asked, incredulous. "Like a tumor?"

"That is Amelia's and my best guess." Iriana said softly, with a hint of fear. "And if so… it grew to encompass part of her memory center and then… vanished."

"_Vanished._" Dust asked, confused. "As in _melted?_"

"No." Iriana said quietly. "As in decomposed leaving little trace of its existence. It… seems like something I read about once. Organic surgical techniques. But those were abandoned as unworkable."

"Organic…techniques…" Dust was, if anything even more worried.

"Yeah." Iriana said quietly. "It looks as if the …well, call it a tumor. As if the tumor grew at a specific place in her memory core, and then vanished from that specific place in her memory core. There is very little scarring. As if… whatever it was simply grew in her memory clusters, lived, died and was absorbed by her body."

"That is impossible." Dust said flatly. "Totally impossible."

"For us."


	9. Chapter 9

**Fragments**

"How you doing, honey?" Iriana's gentle words roused Brownie a little, but then the human woman sighed, her hand rubbing Iriana's slowly as she lay on the scanner bed. She was awake, but barely. "She is relaxed. Shall we start?" The girl had attached to Iriana like a magnet. She hadn't even protested when Irina had injected her with a calming agent and led her into this scanner room before easing her up onto the bed.

"Dust?" Amelia asked softly. "I need it formal." Dust looked to the side where Jasmina and Karl both stood quietly. All three warriors wore warframes, not that they would likely need them. Alicia hovered by the machinery, in robes instead of a warframe. At this point, she was a medic, not a warrior.

"As this human woman's guardian…" Dust said quietly and clearly. "…I authorize the medical staff of this dojo to perform a mindscan to determine what happened to her. I trust the healers of this clan will keep the procedure as minimally traumatic as possible." He didn't –really- trust any docs, but Iriana, Amelia and Alicia came closer than any others he had met.

"Witnessed." Jasmina and Karl said formally with Alicia, Amelia and Iriana.

"We will." Amelia promised. "Iriana will monitor Brownie's anxiety and pain levels. Alicia and I will run the scan with the minimum of power required to read the chemical clusters." Dust nodded to her, patted Brownie's hand and stepped away to where Jasmina and Karl stood. "Images should start to appear on the screen momentarily. We have oriented them so she cannot see them, a breach of protocol, but if they are bad as we imagine…" She shrugged.

"Noted." Dust said quietly. "And… for what it is worth, Doctor Amelia… Thanks."

"Poor girl has been stressed enough." Amelai said sadly as she moved to another bank of machinery. "Scans starting."

Brownie gave a yip as energy started playing over her head, but she relaxed as Iriana stroked her hand. She was obviously not distressed by the energy. As promised, she felt no pain as the machinery started searching through the mess of chemical markers inside her head that remained of her memory cortex.

Dust watched with the others as the monitors slowly glowed, showing… He saw…himself. He saw the scenes in Tenno holding played out from Brownie's perspective. He saw himself appear, help the terrified, angry girl and retreat. But this time, he saw far more. The scanner did not just see visual cues. It saw every nuance that made up memory. Sight, smell, hearing, emotion, all of these and more.

"We knew this part." Amelia said as they watched the Ash tend Brownie, despite Brownie's fear and anger. The doctor moved to change settings, but Karl shook his head. "Sensei?"

"We need to see what happened when she was put in isolation." Karl said heavily. "The recorders were spoofed."

Amelia swallowed, but nodded. Dust did not take his eyes from the screen and it showed him vanishing in a puff of smoke. Brownie had frozen in place, totally unsure of what to do. Then a teleport grabbed her and she had saw bare white walls around her. For a moment, she was frozen, but then relaxed when nothing had hurt her. She had unfrozen enough to explore the white room, it's single bunk and the tiny sanitary facility when it had happened again. Terror suffused every pore as her body stopped working and she fell over, a shadow stepping close to pick her up. An Oberon warframe. He picked her up and carried her to a table where he lay her out before strapping her limbs down. She had tears falling, but Oberon did not notice. Or care. She couldn't move a muscle and…

"Oh my god!" Amelia gasped as the Oberon moved a device close to the field of view. "Tell me he anesthetized her!" Brownie made a soft noise, but relaxed as Iriana stroked her hand again.

"He…. Didn't…" Alicia sounded like she was going to puke as bright energy seared across the screen in Brownie's memory. "That sick… sick piece of…" The scene vanished. "Iriana?"

"She wasn't… sentient." Iriana said softly. "Not to him. Her feelings, her emotional state were not important." She took a deep breath and held Brownie's hand in both of hers. "Ah, girl…" Iriana said, tears starting to fall.

"Dust?" Karl asked. Dust hadn't moved. Not at all.

"I knew he was evil." Dust said softly. "But this… I had no idea." He stepped close to take Brownie's other hand in a gentle grip, avoiding the IV line that had been run. Brownie gave his warframe gauntlet a squeeze and relaxed. "How… How long was she conscious?"

"Not long." Alicia said, rage singing in the depths of her tone. Indeed, the scene showed the Oberon doing something and then the memory faded. "He never spoke, never did anything but that monstrous… violation."

"We will have the reason out of him." Jasmina promised, her tone about as soft as a bar of iron. "It may take a while, but we _will_." She shook herself. "What else can we see?"

"Let me try to find some intact…" Amelia said absently, her fingers flying over her controls. "Here is a cluster that is only partially damaged. Can't really tell a time frame. It's older than some, newer than others." All eyes turned back to the screen as it lit up again.

The scene was…odd. The viewer was lying on something. From the sensations listed, it was comfortable, but… firm. Brownie's point of view was lower than… A form in Tenno robes sat near the viewer. The Tenno was female, and what was visible of her face was sad. A Mag warframe stood nearby, but was obviously empty. A bow was slung across the Mag's shoulders. A familiar one.

"That is the bow Brownie shot me with." Dust said quickly. "The scorch marks…" Indeed, a series of blast marks shone on the bow's side. "That is the _same_ bow. Can we see her face?" All of the others peered as Amelia paused the playback, but most of the Tenno's face was shadowed. Her expression as clear, but not the rest.

"No." Amelia said with a wince. "And there is no sound. Either she didn't speak, or the sound parts of the memory are gone. There is too much degradation. I can't tell which it is."

"Keep going." Karl said quietly.

As Amelia did, a shadow fell over the female Tenno and more than one voice cried out in shock as _another_ warframe appeared. The female Tenno looked up, but did not rise or make any sign of resistance as the red and black warframe cut her down! Brownie made a whimpering noise as everyone exhaled, but subsided when Iriana and Dust soothed her.

"Stalker." Karl said flatly as the memory faded. "What does _he_ have to do with this?"

"Good question." Dust said quietly. "That…Tenno…" He paused. "I think… I think I knew her." He said softly, trying to make his own fragmented memory work. "But… I don't know from where."

"Don't push the memory." Amelia said quickly. "Focus on the feelings associated with it. Good? Bad?"

"Good." Dust said after a moment. "Not…erotic type good, but… friend type good. When we saw her cut down… I felt grief. But for a sister, not a lover." He shook himself. "I don't think anyway. I don't remember a name."

"So much lost…" Iriana said sadly, then shook her head. "We need to continue. Brownie? Still with us?" She asked and the girl gave her a sleepy smile. "Good girl." She crooned. "Let's get this done."

"Moving to fragment sixteen. It's a later fragment, but I cannot tell how long between the two." Amelia said with a nod.

The screen darkened for a moment and then brightened to show… fluid? All eyes in the room turned to look at the dark blue fluid that was on the screen. Bubbles were moving through it and a…

"Wait." Amelia said quickly. "That tube seems familiar. Michelle described a tube of some kind in the Infested pod that she was trapped in. What color was the fluid?"

"Karen and Aeron said it was reddish brown. They took samples, but it degraded before they could get it back. Their focus was Michelle." Alicia said without hesitation. Dust looked at her and she shrugged. "I looked up any references that might help. Brownie is definitely inside something. And look…" She motioned to the screen and winced. "That surface looks alive." Then she gasped.

She wasn't alone. Everyone gasped as a huge image appeared in the girl's remembered field of view. Dust felt his pulse start to race as he saw the Infested Ancient. Then he paused.

"That is a Healer Ancient." Dust said slowly. "And the membrane between the two is alive." He swallowed as a human hand appeared in the field of view and touched the membrane between the viewer and the Ancient. The hand was covered in the odd material that Brownie had worn. "Is there… sound?"

"No." Amelia said with a gulp. "But…" She triggered a control and a voice was heard. Sounding from Brownie's memories.

_Hurt. Young human is hurt. Be still. _The voice was…odd. Gentle, but pervasive. The hand that had been touching the membrane fell away. _That is it, rest little one._ The voice was… female. Kind. It gained strength, or the connection solidified. _We have done what we can. Your parents grieve, but you live. You will live, little one. You will be our bridge. _Dust went completely still at that.

"Bridge?" Karl asked for everyone. But…

_Whoever sees this…_ The whole room went still as the Ancient spoke to Brownie, but not _to_ Brownie. _Whoever finds this record. Protect this youngling. This hurt human female is far more important than any have guessed. _

"What the…?" Amelia said, dazed.

"Shhh!" Alicia snapped, focusing on her machinery.

_We did what we could, but she was so sorely hurt._ The voice held sorrow now. _An innocent destroyed. And for what? The pursuit of knowledge? Even our kind have limits. Even the most bestial of the lesser cousins would not callously destroy a young mind because they _could_.__ We removed the-_

The scene fizzled into static. Both Alicia and Amelia worked their machinery, but nothing else appeared on the screen.

"Well, that sucks." Alicia said with a sigh. "Karl?"

"I know." Karl said quietly. Iriana and Dust both looked at him and the Rhino shrugged. "We have had…encounters with more sentient acting Infested. Michelle's adventures were a chunk of it, but not all."

"This stinks, Karl." Jasmina complained.

"It gets worse." Amelia said with a sigh as she stepped away from her gear. "That memory cluster was damaged by the latest violation."

"Redi… damaged _that_ memory cluster?" Dust said slowly. Amelia nodded. "Why?" The Ash demanded. Brownie whimpered and Dust sighed. "Sorry, Brownie." He and Iriana soothed her again.

"No idea. Doubt it is coincidence though." Amelia started shutting down the machinery. "You can sleep now, Brownie." She said in a gentle tone. The girl looked at Amelia, sighed and fell asleep. Amelia smiled and shook her head. "I wish Sara was so biddable at times."

A soft chuckle swept the room as Dust gathered the slumbering girl up in his arms and carried her from the room, Iriana, Amelia and Alicia following. Dust moved into the quarters that they had set up for Brownie and laid her on the bed. He waited until the docs had set up monitors and then left with them.

"Someone will be with her at all times." Iriana said quietly. "I cannot ferret out this maze of lies and half-truths, Dust. I _can_ help her." The other medics nodded as well.

"Thank you." Dust said as he made his way back to where Karl was speaking quietly to Jasmina. "I am going back to Mars." He said calmly.

"Why?" Karl asked softly, but Jasmina looked at him cautiously.

"Because that is where her family –if that _is_ really what they are- were." Dust said with a shrug. "The Infested… did not attack them. Indeed, they _worked_ with Infested. That is… unprecedented in my memory." He looked to Jasmina and Karl who nodded as well. "We need answers. We might find some there."

"And if you run into Phorid?" Karl asked calmly.

"I run like _hell_." Dust said firmly. "Confidence is one thing, taking on Phorid alone is _suicide_."

"Good to hear." Jasmina said with a nod. "But you are _not_ going alone." She said flatly.

"Jasmina…" Dust groaned. "I can stealth in and stealth out."

"And if your stealth is blown? What then?" Jasmina asked. "You barely got out last time, and then _only_ because Alad V's pet monstrosity distracted the hunters." Dust shrugged, but she did have a point.

"The fewer going in, the less footprint." Dust said quietly. "Two at most for a recon operation." Karl and Jasmina exchanged a glance. "Yes?"

"If you are facing Infested, I am going." Jasmina said firmly. Ember warframe versus Infested made a big smoking pile of dead Infested.

"Jasmina…" Dust said with a wince. Then he shook himself. "Okay. When?"

"Whenever you are ready." Jasmina replied. "We can take my ship. It arrived an hour ago. Your gear?"

"My ship is still at the colony. I didn't think to order it to come here." Dust said with a sigh. "But my basic weapons will work for a recon op." Recon teams weren't supposed to get into firefights. If they did, something had gone seriously wrong.

"We have stocks you can use." Karl offered. Dust looked at him and Karl shrugged. "You are right that the fewer people sent on a recon op the better, but at least check and see if we have anything you can use." Dust thought about that and nodded reluctantly. "I will tell Aeron to expect you." With that, the Rhino left the room.

"You okay, ash for brains?" Jasmina asked, worried.

"I'm okay, hot stuff." Dust joked, but his heart wasn't in it. Jasmina just looked at him and Dust sighed. "That girl… Something about her." Jasmina did not speak and Dust sighed. "It… I don't know her. Or… I don't _think_ I know her."

"She is cute." Jasmina said quietly and Dust went stiff. "Don't get upset, Dust. She is cute in a naïve feral human sort of way."

"Don't go there." Dust said, his tone deadly serious. Jasmina stiffened.

"It was a joke, Dust." Jasmian stared at him and then shivered. "Dust… It was a_ joke_."

"She is like a little…" Dust trailed off, thinking hard about what he was saying. "No… _She_ isn't like a little sister. That Mag… Did we ever ID the bow's owner?"

"The bow was last registered to a Tenno named Elenia." Jasmina said sadly. "She wore a Mag warframe and disappeared-" She broke off as Dust Inhaled.

"A year ago." Dust said, his voice hell shocked. "I…" He bowed his head. "I knew I recognized the bow."

"You knew her." It wasn't a question.

"I did." Dust replied.

"_Well_." Again, Jasmina's tone was not a question.

"None of your business, hot stuff." Dust said, not arguing. Stating a fact.

"Dust, if it bears on this at all…" Jasmina said in warning. "Then it _is_ my business." Dust made a soft noise and she relented. "Dust. It might be important."

"I don't see how." Dust said quietly. "She is gone. We knew when she died. She…left some stuff to me. Guns, some blueprints. I… I didn't look at much of it." Jasmina looked at him and Dust shook his head. "No ciphered documents, no encrypted files. Just a couple of guns. She left me her Drakgoon."

"You use shotguns?" Jasmina asked.

"I admired it when we met." Dust said with a sad sigh. "But no, I don't use a lot of shotguns. I prefer precision to brute force."

"Hmmm…" Jasmina said,a scowl visible even through her closed helmet. "What blueprints?"

"Extractors, some swords that I don't have in my own collection, a Detron…" He shrugged. "No parts for that, but kind of cool looking. Maybe someday. Nothing else."

"Nothing?" Jasmina asked softly. "That is… odd."

"Our relationship was…odd." Dust said with a sigh. "She was brash and brave." Then he paused. "She came to me…" He said slowly. "I was… I was aloof. We were paired for a mission and afterwards, she came to me and asked 'Your place or mine'." Jasmina burst out laughing and Dust shook his head. "She was… something else. A good sister. A good soul. It didn't last, neither of us figured it would but… It was fun." He felt melancholy all of a sudden, memory of the younger Tenno sharp and clear.

"Just when I think I know all your secrets." Jasmian said with a laugh. "You had a girl."

"No." Dust said with quiet dignity. "I had a _woman_. There is a difference." Jasmine paused and then nodded.

"I do not belittle your loss, Dust." Jasmina said softly. "But we all lost things."

"That we have." Dust agreed. "What say you and me go figure out why this particular piece of my past wound up in Brownie's head and hands?"

"Right." Jasmina replied. "And when we are done? Your place or mine?" Dust froze and Jasmina chortled. "I _wish_ I could see your face right now."

"You are _evil_, Jasmina." Dust said with a sigh. "And I still have to get you back for the fish."

"That wasn't me!" Jasmina said with an air of injured innocence.

"Right…."


	10. Chapter 10

**Recon**

_Where are they?_ Dust asked in gestures. Jasmina, at his side did not reply, but both were feeling a sense of foreboding. This part of Mars always felt a bit… lost. But this was ridiculous.

Karl's clan had been very generous, offering unlimited access to the clan's armory. Dust had picked a few extra mods for his weapons and gone from there. The same MK-1 Braton, Lato and Skana were better modded than they had been. Both firearms had full noise suppression and the sword now had ice damage that would slow any enemy down. Before, he had been geared for assassinating an Infested target. Now? He had no idea at all what he was going to encounter. So he was set up to take virtually any enemy quietly. Jasmina… had gone the other way.

He didn't need to glance at her to read her loadout. It gave him the willies at times to have her behind him. He knew that _she_ knew what she was doing, but still… The Ogris in her hands made him _very_ nervous even if he hadn't known how powerfully modded the weapon was. He did, he had seen her mod it. The Prime Sicarus and Prime Glaive that she carried just made things worse. The Glaive had made him nervous for some reason, but he couldn't explain it so he had ignored the feeling. Only the Glaive was a true 'silent' weapon. Not that he expected her to use it that way. It was a sword with more reach for her, not a stealth tool like his Skana.

It had been…odd to visit the clan's armory. Not bad. Just odd. They had a preponderance of Prime weapons. All kinds of Prime weapons, including some he had not seen for… Well, he wasn't sure when he had last seen a Bolto Prime. Or a Vasto Prime. But they had both. Not his preferred style, but _very_ cool. Then the rest. It had taken all of Dust's stern control not to _fawn_ over some of the gear that Karl's people had collected. Somas, Tigris and Vectis had been prominent. Small wonder in a well-stocked Tenno armory, but… so many of them. The room had been massive and filled with weapons of all description. Not just normal Tenno weapons either. There had been a few that even _Tenno_ in _warframes_ would have had difficulty managing.

Dust was all about mobility. Stealth, speed and mobility were his hallmarks, but even _he_ had seen the armorer's pride and joy and nearly had a gun-gasm. He wasn't sure _where_ he had seen the odd weapon before. He _had_, he knew that. It was hard to forget. A minigun, but not _just_ a minigun. (As if that wasn't enough!) It was a massive chunk of death spewing metal with a _rocket launcher_ attached! Admittedly, it only had ten rounds of rocket ammo and reloading it in the field would be impossible. But still… Dust had nearly swooned when he saw it. He, Aeron and Miguel, the other armorer, had spent ten minutes talking about it before Jasmina had –pointedly- urged him to 'get on with it'. Dust had promised to come back and talk about the 'chain gun' as Miguel called it, when he had time. It wasn't really a Tenno style weapon. Moving with it would be difficult and parkour would be impossible. But it was _beyond_ cool.

Then… Jasmina's ship had been fast and efficient. They had reached Mars quickly and been dropped near where Dust had been for his Assassination mission. The habitats and greenhouses were exactly as he had left them. Well… Mostly. The signs of battle were everywhere. Dead Corpus robotics lay in places, some of them torn to pieces. No bodies were left of whatever they had been fighting but from the claw and bite marks on some of the remnants? Both Tenno knew it had been Infested. No Infested remains were to be seen, however and that made sense. If the Infested had won, they would have... um… absorbed the remaining bio mass. If the Corpus won, then no one _sane_ wanted Infested flesh just _lying_ around. But neither of them could tell which side had won. There were no signs of Corpus in the area currently. Corpus did not just up and _leave_ an area they fought so hard for. But if the Infested had won… where were _they_? This area was completely deserted!

_Doesn't feel right._ Dust signed to Jasmina and she acknowledged.

_Trap?_ Jasmina signed and Dust nodded. _For who? _Dust shrugged and she nodded. _Keep going._

Dust recognized the area. He had ambushed the Ancient and been ambushed by Brownie just ahead. All of his senses were on hyperalert as he eased into a clearing and… What the hell?

Something new had been added. A large square stone had been moved into the middle of the clearing. Dust inhaled sharply as he realized that the stone had been moved to exactly where the Toxic Ancient that he had killed had fallen. Jasmina remained in cover, her Ogris tracking around as Dust slowly approached the… was 'plinth' the right word? It sounded right. It looked as if the stone was meant to hold a statue or something. There was writing on it and Dust scrutinized it. What he read had him recoiling.

'Marishia, a friend, gave her life here for Lisa, daughter of Lars and Helga. She is missed.'

_Lisa?_ Dust asked himself, backing slowly away from the stone. Someone had _named_ the Infested Ancient? How? Why? This made _no_ sense. No one had ever been able to decipher the Infested language, _if_ they had one. Then again… The voice in Brownie's mind had spoken of 'the lesser cousins'. So… The sapient ones considered the others 'lesser'? He needed more information. He turned back to Jasmina, but…

The Ember was _gone!_ Dust cast his Smoke Screen instantly and dodged to the side as something flew through where he had been. Nothing should have been able to sneak up on a Tenno! Nothing should have been able to disable a Tenno of Jasmina's skill without making a sound, without letting her get off a warning. He walked slowly and carefully away from where an odd net of some kind sparked on the ground. There had been no noise. He moved to where Jasmina had been and yes… The faint signs of something being dragged led away from the clearing. He heard something and dodged to the side as another net fell. He looked up to see a pair of humans standing on a tree branch overhead, their faces filled with hate.

"Get him!" One of the humans screamed and the brush around the clearing seemed to come alive. At least a dozen human forms stepped out into view. None of them showed on his warframe sensors and suddenly he knew that the Corpus forces hadn't just been beaten here. They had been _slaughtered_. All of these humans carried Dera rifles, probably scavenged from the Corpus.

Dust dropped a small device and moved away. The speaker squawked and the humans paused, aiming at it.

"Did you know the Corpus can track those weapons?" Dust asked in a mild tone through the speaker. "They will know where you are." Normally, Tenno did not speak in the field, but he really did _not_ want to fight these humans.

"Where is my daughter, you filthy piece of betraying crap?" The man who had shouted at Dust before said, pushing to the fore. The man's dark hair was ragged and his face was weathered from stress and long work.

"The girl who shot me is alive." Dust replied through the speaker he had dropped, seeking a hole in the ring of humans. There wasn't one. His Smoke Screen's invisibility wouldn't last forever. He couldn't get a reading on the humans in the trees to teleport. They were staying out of the range of a visual lock. They had learned. "How long has she been disabled?" At that, the humans paused in their encirclement.

"What do _you_ care, Betrayer?" The man snapped, but his expression was guarded.

"Because unlike _some_…" Dust said, still in that same mild tone. "I remember what the Tenno's primary duty was. Before the War, during it and now. _Protecting_ people like you. It is still my duty."

"You hurt my daughter." The man snapped. "You hurt her and took her, killed her friend! Probably killed her too when you were done with your sick fun!"

"She is alive. Look." Dust said through the speaker, still moving even as his invisibility faded and they turned to track him. "She _shot_ me. She was acting very strange. I could tell she was hurting just by looking at her. She was…wrong." Dust said with a sigh. "We needed to know what was happening here. We might be able to help her. Probably not, but _maybe_. Isn't that _worth_ the chance?" He pleaded. "I didn't hurt her beyond digitizing her! What was I _supposed_ to do? _Carry_ her kicking and screaming from the forest? She _lives_!"

"You lie!" The man said firmly. "Take him!" With that, the ring of humans charged.

Three of the humans threw nets like the first one, but Dust managed to dodge each in turn. He didn't want to hurt these people, but he couldn't let them take him either. Whatever they had planned wasn't going to be good for him. Just from the looks on their faces, he could tell that. They had all slung the Dera rifles and now held Prova shock sticks as if they knew how to use them. Who knew? Maybe they did.

"I am not your enemy." Dust said as he leaped clear over the head of the nearest human, dodging in mid-air as shock sticks swung at him. "Don't make me your enemy!" He pleaded as he darted away from the ring, following the barely visible trail that led from where Jasmina had been standing. But then, he jumped high, catching a low hanging branch and swarmed up into the tree. He hid there, covered in foliage as the pack below thundered in pursuit.

"After him!" The loud male screamed. "Don't let him near the 'Home'."

_Home?_ Dust thought to himself, not moving as other forms ran through the trees. One of them passed nearly close enough to touch, but Dust remained silent and still. He wasn't here to hurt these humans. He was here to find out what was going on. Now, as well, he had to find Jasmina. He checked the remote speaker and the human's hadn't touched it. He keyed a search pulse through it and winced at the feedback. Whatever was holding Jasmina was powerful. Powerful enough to scramble her warframe's positional sensors. Dust shook himself. Only one way to find out what was going on. The hard way.

He ghosted forward, eyes and all other senses poised as the forest came alive with shouts of consternation, calls back and forth from the human hunters. Then his blood ran cold as howls started in the distance. Infested.

_Aw crap. _Dust's options had just slimmed even further. If he had sense, he would fall back, get reinforcements and come back to search. But in that time, who knew what would happen to Jasmina? He couldn't leave a sister in peril any more than he could hurt humans. He would, if he had to. But not_ until_ and _unless_ he had to. He shook his head and keyed the speaker to emit sound at regular intervals. That would draw many of the enemies away from where he was moving, cautiously along the tree branches. Luckily these trees had been growing since the Collapse and had huge branches…

He stilled as he felt vibrations on the branch. He slid down and carefully grabbed hold of the bark, holding himself up against the underside of the branch as some people, or some _things_, ran along over top of him. He couldn't travel like this, but as long as he remained motionless, it would take a special miracle for any of the enemy he could see running around below him now to see him even if they looked straight at him.

"He has got to be here!" The male from before yelled. "He isn't back at the memorial and he didn't get past us. He _has_ to be here!"

Dust waited until the vibrations on the branch ended, then swung himself back up onto it. He found himself face to face with a scared young human. Before the boy could scream, Dust had a hand over his mouth.

"I don't want to hurt you." Dust said in a tone far calmer than he felt as he secured the human's arms to his sides with his other hand. "Don't _make_ me hurt you." He said sharply. "There has been _enough_ pain already." The boy snarled under Dust's hand and… to Dust's horror, threw himself backwards. Into open air! Dust pulled him back to solid wood, but to do that, he had to let go of the boy's mouth.

"_Here!_" The boy screamed. "_He is-_" Before he could finish his shout, Dust slapped a nerve cluster on the idiot's skull and the boy's eyes rolled up into his head, instantly unconscious. Dust laid the human down gently as shouts started again. He slumped a bit and then sighed as howls started again. Right below him.

"So be it." The Tenno warrior said sadly. Then he threw _himself_ off the wood. The mass of infested below were far too many to fight one on one. He didn't care. He landed on an Ancient Disruptor, his Skana slicing down, deep into the monstrosity. As he rolled upright, he saw the humans falling back and smiled grimly under his helmet as the Infested charged. Then he did it.

Bladestorm was the Ash warframe's ultimate ability. It's most powerful skill and deadliest trick in the arsenal. Teleporting was not a natural skill, even for Tenno. But it was a powerful one. Before the first Charger even reached him, Dust had vanished. He chose a target and reappeared behind said target, his forearm blades coming out to slice deep into the Leaper. Before it even _fell_, dead before it knew what hit it, he was _gone_. Again and again, he did the same.

Before the stunned humans could even _blink_ twice, Dust stood alone in a clearing filled with dead Infested. Fifteen total Infested, from Crawlers all the way up to Ancients, slowly sank into cooling masses as he sheathed his forearm blades and laughed coldly. All of the watchers flinched from his mocking amusement.

"You were _saying?_" Dust said in a dark and dangerous voice as all the humans took a step back. "Oh, don't start!" He snapped. "None of _you_ are dead. _Yet._" He singled out the male who had spoken. "You just _had_ to push. I know you don't believe me, but the girl I took lives. I can't change your mind. I don't have the power or the _right_ to do so, but if you push a war with me, I will _give_ you one. A war you won't _believe_."

His rifle came into his hands and he strode from the small clearing, all of the humans making way for him. All but one. The man who had accosted him did not move. Dust did not slow. Indeed, he ran into the human, knocked him down and stepped over him to continue. He felt the human try to hit him and he kicked out. A sick crack and scream told him he had broken bones, but Dust did not slow until he reached the underbrush. He followed the path ahead of him, the signs that something had been dragged away. Odd that he hadn't heard it. Dragging something as large as a warframe…

He followed the path of barely disturbed vegetation until he approached a cave entrance. At it, two humans trained rifles on him.

"I am here for my sister." Dust said flatly. "Unless you want to die, point those elsewhere." The threat in his voice came through loud and clear even when his rifle wasn't up and tracking. "My rifle is set to penetrate Grineer armor. Your garments won't even slow my bullets down." He said as he came even closer. Both looked at one another and shook their heads, lowering their rifles. "That is the first smart thing I have…" He started to say and then froze as an impossibility reared it's way out of the cave.

_Aw shit…_

The J-3 Golem Infested had not been seen for some time. It had originally been most commonly seen around the Jupiter subsystem, harrying the Corpus attempts to reclaim the areas lost to Infested during the Great War and after the Collapse. But then it had disappeared. Dust had fought it before, always a part of Tenno strike teams. He knew what was coming.

_We are Countless. Consume us. Be reborn._ The large Infested strode forward, both humans moving away. Dust as well retreated a little, his rifle coming up. _Why do you destroy us? We are your flesh._

_Not mine. _Dust snapped internally, only to pause as the Infested seemed to freeze. _Do you hear me, monster? Not today!_

"Indeed, Dust." A quiet voice sounded from the cave and Dust's eyes went wide as a Mag warframe stepped out of the cave to stand beside the huge infested. A familiar Mag! "No one else needs to die today. Not Tenno, not human, not Infested. No one."

"Elenia." The name slipped out of Dust's mouth. "What have you _done_, sister?'

"What do _any_ of us do, Dust?" The Mag asked sadly as she raised her hand, a halo of golden energy appearing around Dust as both humans raised their rifles again. Bullet Attractor. If he fired his weapon, the bullets would hit _him_. Dust stared at his one-time lover and she sighed sadly. "We do what we have to do. Drop it." She commanded.

"With all due respect, traitor." Dust said softly as he slung his rifle and drew his Skana. "Kiss my butt."

"We can stop you, Dust." Elenia said as sounds came from behind, Infested and humans alike, closing.

"Can you?" Dust asked. "Can you _really_?"

"Dust!" Elenia pleaded as the Ash sank into a combat crouch, his Skana at the ready. "If you _ever_ loved me, don't!" She pleaded.

"I don't know you." Dust said calmly and then his world dissolved into pain and fury.


	11. Chapter 11

**Do or do not**

Life was snippets of pain.

Pain. Dust was moving like a dervish, swinging his Skana, teleporting while he had power, then dodging for all he was worth. Green toxin hemmed him in and Infested charged in unending waves. He didn't bother blocking as his shield indicator fell like a waterfall under the torrent of bullets and plasma charges sent his way.

Pain. An Infested managed to grab ahold of Dust, his few remaining shields fuzzing in the Disruptor's touch. More pain to match the ache in his heart as he spun, his Skana sinking deep into the Ancient and then it was stuck! He couldn't draw it out! More Infested were closing as he jumped away from the falling Ancient, his pistol coming to hand, but… The golden sphere was still around him. His power reserves were nearly gone, but his warframe could and did soak up limited power from some of the fallen. He could…

Pain. "_Dust! No!_" Elenia screaming in denial as he hit his Bladestorm again, vanishing from _under_ the claws of the Charger that had shattered his shields. Infested after Infested fell to his blades, then…

Pain. He froze in mid strike. It wasn't an Infested under his blade. It was a human boy. The _same_ human boy he had knocked unconscious in the trees. The boy stared up at Dust, his face horrified. Dust stared at the boy, and then deliberately sheathed his blades and stood up, the halo of golden energy still around him, drawing all of the enemy fire at him. At the red line on his HUD which started to fall too. Worse pain mounted as he met Elenia's gaze with his own. The huge Infested beside her drew back and swung as she screamed his name. Dust… didn't dodge.

Pain "Damnit Dust!" A loud voice shouted in his ear. "Of all the _stupid_…! Healer!" He started to struggle and something dragged Dust down again.

* * *

**Later**

When Dust could see again, he wished he couldn't. He was floating in something familiar. He had never felt it, but he had seen it. Seen it through Brownie's eyes. The fluid was blue and had bubbles floating through it. The tube in his mouth was held on by something. Even when he managed to get his hands up to pull it out, he couldn't. Something happened and his hands fell limp.

"Don't be stupid, Dust." Elenia's sour voice came from nearby and he glared through the pod as a Mag warframe appeared in his field of view. "It is well secured. Besides you are not breathing through it. You are breathing through your nose. The fluid that the tube is introducing through your stomach and lungs is stimulating rapid healing. You will be out of there in a few hours." Dust growled at her and she shrugged. "Hate me if you wish, but I can't let you ruin everything. You and our newest recruit will be a handful, but we will handle you. Rest, my friend." Elenia said sadly. "I know you hate me right now, but it was for a good cause. You will see."

Darkness crowded his vision, but this time, Dust fought back. He strove with every fiber of his being to stay awake. Elenia sighed.

"Fine, _be_ that way." The Mag said softly. "We are _trying_ to limit your pain. The pain you felt when we had to _cut_ the remnants of your warframe off before the toxin corroded all the way in and _killed_ you." Dust snorted in derision through the tube and Elenia shrugged. "You always _were_ stubborn, Dust. But now I need to see to our new sister."

Dust went still at those words and watched as Elenia walked to a nearby shadow. A shadow that resolved into a table with a still female form lying on it. Jasmina wore an odd head covering. A sheet covered her body form the neck down, but Dust could see the marks of cuts and burns on her.

"Easy sister." Elenia crooned. "It's okay. We won't hurt you any more. You are among friends."

"No need to lie to me, traitor." Jasmina's cold voice sounded and Dust had to grin around the thing in his throat. She was fine. "You may take my warframe and my weapons, but you will not take who I am from me."

"I am not _trying_ to." Elenia said with a trace of sadness. "But if we don't restrain you, you would hurt or kill people. It is what we Tenno do."

"Don't compare me to you." Jasmina snapped. "We are nothing alike."

"No?" Elena said with a small chuckle. "We both love Dust."

"You have an _odd_ way of showing it." Jasmina said with a snarl. "Pull me and hold me while your slaves net me. Then shoot _him_ full of holes. Sure. _Sure_ you love him."

"I _do_ love Dust." Elenia said softly, running her hand over Jasmina's still form. Dust couldn't see any restraint, but they had to be there. "Give me a chance, sister. I can show you a better way."

"Slavery?" Jasmina snapped. "Or…mindlessness like that poor girl? Were _you_ the one who took part of her brain out?"

"What do you know of her?" Elenia asked, concerned. "Of Lisa?" Dust went still. Brownie was Lisa? The girl whose name was on the memorial?

"Ah, you give your pets names now?" Jasmina snarked.

"She is _not_ my pet!" Elenia snapped, her hand coming up. Then she relaxed slowly. "Nice try, sister. But… There we go." Jasmina jerked on the table and Dust's heart sank. "Easy…" Elenia crooned. "First step is the hardest."

"**** you!" Jamsina croaked out and then went still.

"_No!_" Elenia shouted. "She is trying to suicide! Healer!" Dust went still as an Ancient Healer shambled to the table and an eerie green glow surrounded the still Tenno on it. Elenia watched and then relaxed. "Keep her out for a bit. I will try again later. - Yes, she is going to be a handful. - Yes, she will be worth it. - Please." She said, obviously replying to a conversation that only she could hear. The Ancient remained at the table. Elenia was shaking her head as she strode back towards where Dust floated. "Tough even for a Tenno." She said and she touched the tank. _You _can_ talk to me, Dust. Like this. _ Somehow she had created a neural link without him being in a warframe!

_Nothing to say._ Dust replied, closing his eyes. _Not to you. Just try whatever you are going to try. Won't work._

_You always said 'Do or do not, there is no try'. We are not going to hurt either of you, Dust._ Elenia said quietly. _When your friend is done, we will bring you in. Dust, it's _not_ bad._ She pleaded. _You will belong._

_I _do_ belong. _Dust retorted._ To something _you_ threw away. _Elenia winced, but then nodded.

_From your current point of view, yes._ Elenia said sadly. _From mine? Dust, it was the only choice. But… I need to know. What happened to Lisa? We lost our connection to her._

_You _did_ operate on her brain. _Dust said flatly. _And Stalker did not kill you._

_He came very close. _Elenia said with a visible wince. _If Healer hadn't been close with backup, I would be dead._

_Pity. _Dust said dryly. _How many more of my kin will you kill?_

_How many of _mine_ will _you_ kill? _ Elenia replied without heat. _Dust, it is not that simple. These people… it's not that simple._

_How long have you worked with Redi?_ Dust asked. He was not expecting her reply. Her _hate_ filled reply.

_I don't!_ She snapped in her mind. _I won't! That sick twisted scum! I…_ She paused and then chuckled in her mind. _Well played, Dust. Always a master of misdirection._

_You gave her the bow she shot me with._ Dust said quietly. _Why?_

_She was always a good shot._ Elenia replied sadly. _She wanted to help and she liked Mirisha__._

_Mirisha._ Dust said flatly. _You name the Infested._

_No. _Elenia responded mildly. _Some of them remember names. Not always theirs, but names. Mirisha was a good sort. Protective of the children and kind to Lisa. She remembered her name. I don't know why the Lotus ordered her death. She wasn't a threat._

_I see. _Dust said flatly. _Of course Infested are no threat at __**all**_ The dryness in his tone might have sucked an ocean down.

_Don't twist my words! _Elenia snapped._ Yes, some _are_. She _wasn't_. Not until you threatened her young, her children__._

Her_ young? _Dust asked, incredulous.

_Not biologically._ Elenia said, her tone turning tired and sad. _But psychologically? Yes. She cared for Lisa after the girl… After what Redi did… _Dust did not reply and Elenia sighed. _You are not going to ask, are you?_

_How much of what we shared was a lie, Elenia? _Dust asked, changing the subject. _You obviously had an agenda._

_So did you. _Elenia responded sadly. _You do not remember, but you did. We will help you remember what that scum took from you._

_I hope you do not mind if I do not trust anything you say. _Dust said sardonically. _Your mind control won't work. And whatever you put I my head will die._

_I don't have to put anything in your head, Dust. _Elenia said gently. _It is already there. Rest now, brother._ Darkness swept him up despite everything he could do and pulled him under.

* * *

Screams of rage and pain woke Dust. He started, only to find himself on the table he had seen before or one like it. He was strapped down by things that felt alive. His eyes were covered. But then, he stilled. Elenia's voice was sharp.

"Stop fighting, sister!" She snapped. "Everything you do hurts you! It won't hurt if you don't fight! Just relax, let the feelings flow. It will come whether you want it or not. If you flow with it, it hurts much less."

"I… am…" Jasmina's voice was taut with pain and anger, but clear. "…no…kin… of _yours_!" She spit and Elenia sighed.

"If you keep struggling, you are going to hurt yourself and we are going to have to put you in the tank, sister." Elenia said with a mournful sound. "We don't want to."

"No need to lie, Infested." Jasmina snapped. "It won't work on me."

"It is not a lie. The truth will win out in the end." Elenia said in a soothing voice. "Sleep now. When you wake, we will talk again." Jasmina's expletive laced reply faded and Elenia sighed again. "Yes, Healer. - Please soothe her injuries. - Yes…" She said, replying to a conversation only she could her. "I know. – Yes, she will keep hurting herself if we let her-" She chuckled sadly. "Was _I _any better, my friend? – Yes, I know. Thank you." Dust did not move as he heard someone move towards him. "Good morning, Dust." She said quietly.

Dust did not respond, letting his ears catalogue the area. He could hear the sounds of Infested around as well as soft voices. At least four Infested were audible and as many humans in addition to Elenia. A hand was on his strapped down arm and he did not react.

"Cataloguing your surroundings by ear?" Elenia asked with a lilting laugh. "Ah, Dust… You haven't changed at all." He ignored her, focusing on what he could hear. What he could feel. "Despite your best attempts, Dust, we are not enemies. The ones you killed will be reborn." Elenia said sadly. "Please, talk to me?" Dust ignored her, working what little mobility he had in the restraints, seeking an avenue of escape, any avenue. But he was held too tightly. "Dust, please!" Elenia begged. The hand traced up his arm to touch his cheek. "We are trying not to hurt you!"

"Funny, ha ha ha." Dust snapped, trying to catch the finger that stroked his cheek with his teeth. Something tapped his nose and he snapped at that.

"Not funny at all, Dust." Elenia said softly. "Not funny at all. We… We lost track of you. Finding you in that mission was a godsend. You didn't remember me, us. That was clear. But then… after… You vanished again. Dust, what happened?"

"I do not talk to traitors!" Dust snapped and then sank back, willing himself to die. Whatever they wanted him for he would…

Warmth spread from Dust's chest across his body. Soothing, calming warmth. Familiar warmth.

_Easy__,__ my friend._ The soft, female voice said in his head. _There is no need. You do not remember. I know this. We… know this. _Deep sadness echoed through the voice. _You were so brave, so strong. Why? Oh __**why**__ did we let you go?_ Sorrow, heartbreaking sorrow echoed through the mind that touched his. _Please, my friend. Don't… Don't make us hurt you. Mind Of Light is young, but her heart is in the right place. She truly _does_ mean well. She… is not always the most tactful of people, but she _does_ mean well._

_I do not know you. _Dust managed to speak through the haze of whatever was holding his pain at bay. It was hard. Harder than anything else he had done. It felt… so familiar. So comforting. So… gentle and accepting.

_Yes__,__ you do._ The voice reassured him. _You do not remember. The other ones took your memory. You fought for us. You tried so hard to help us. Even when all the others turned on us, you helped us. Let us help you. Please?_ The sorrow, the sheer pain and sorrow in the words was mind numbing and Dust barely felt the weight that had been lying against his chest withdraw. But then, soft words came again. _You have forgotten. You were made to forget. But we remember. Now and always, we remember. Champion of the Unclean__.__ Dustin._

_Dust…in? _Dust managed to reply, but the other voice was gone.

"That was your name." Elenia said sadly. "Dustin."

"You are lying." Dust said, swallowing hard. "My name is _Dust_!" He snapped.

"Search your feelings, Dust. If that is what you want to be called, then I will call you that. But your name _was_ Dustin." Elenia said as a hand stroked his forehead. "We are going to try and reconnect the neural pathways that they cut. It will probably hurt."

"Go ahead!" Dust nearly screamed. "If brainwashing me is all you can do…" He was stunned when a slap rocked his face.

"_We didn't brainwash you!_" Elenia screamed. "They_ did it to you! To make you forget who and what you were!_"

"You lie." Dust snapped back and then gasped as a hand held his head down and a cold thing pressed against the side of his head. A wet cold thing. "No…" He said softly as it warmed and started to move. Nothing hurt, but he could feel wetness seeping down the side of his head. Blood.

"Easy, brother." Elenia said sadly. "It won't take long. We don't need to…" She inhaled sharply and gave a cry of absolute loss. "Oh my god… _No_…" To his surprise, she started to _cry_. "No…They _didn't_!"

"What?" Dust snapped. "Stop speaking in riddles, _traitor_!"

"They… they took _out_ the memories." Elenia was crying hard now. "We… we cannot reconnect to them. They are…physically gone. The man you were… is gone." A keen of grief came from around the room. A keen from many throats, not all of them human.

"Nice theatrics." Dust snapped. "Just do whatever you are going to."

"We don't have a choice now." Elenia said between sobs. "I am sorry. I am so sorry."

Whatever snarkiness Dust was going to reply vanished as something bit him on the side of the head. Pain seemed to explode from that spot through his whole brain. He focused past it as his training dictated. The pain ebbed and flowed and… Then it all quiet. Everything was muted, soft.

"There." Elenia said, sorrow in her tone. "Healer?" She begged.

_I will do what I can, dear Elenia._ The sad voice from before said. Something touched Dust on the side of his head. _Be at ease, brother. We will not harm you. _The words made sense, but when Dust tried to reply, nothing came out. _No!_ The voice of the one called Healer was shocked, scared and shocked. _No! We didn't!_

_What is happening? _Elenia's mind voice was sharp with grief and fear. Fear for _Dust_, he realized.

_I don't know._ Healer's voice held worry. _I don't… __**No!**_ The kind voice screamed in Dust's head. _Stop! It was supposed to stop! It hasn't stopped! The probe is going too deep!_

_Stop it! _Elenia begged. _I have lost too many kin already! Please, healer! What do I __**do**__?_

_Hold him. _The voice of the one known as healer was stern now. Strong hands took hold of his body, more than one human's _Dust, be calm._ She said quietly. _This is going to hurt but we will be able to repair you when the probe is out__._

Whatever Dust might have said, or tried to say was shelved as white hot agony flared in his mind. He screamed and writhed, the cover on his face falling off. He had a moment to see the Mag holding him down, three humans helping her as the Ancient Healer, its body limed in green energy, laid both its long tentacle and its short one on Dust's head. But then… Something else happened. Warmth spread from the Ancient's tentacles. And… other voices sounded in his head. Many, many voices, all as one.

_It's okay, Dust._ The multitudes of voices said in unison. _We have you. Easy. _They crooned, but his fear was strong, so strong. He clawed with his bound hands, he kicked his bound ankles, he bit with his teeth. He struggled for everything he was worth until the voices spoke again.

_Welcome home, Champion. _Dust was crying as he fell into the acceptance that surrounded him.

He didn't understand their words.


	12. Chapter 12

**Healing**

Dust woke to a need. He tried to get up and a hand was at his shoulder, guiding him, helping him. He couldn't see, couldn't speak. The hand rolled him on his side.

"Easy…" A soft female voice said as the pressures within him were eased. "You slept on the catheter, Dust. It's okay. It's okay." She soothed him as he whined, trying to understand what was wrong. Why his mind was suddenly just… gray. "Shh…" She crooned. "It's all right." She sounded so sad.

Dust nuzzled up against her, trying to ease the distress he could hear in her voice. He opened his mouth, but a whine was all that came out.

"They hurt you." The female voice said sadly. "They put a trap in your mind in case you escaped. In case you came back to us. We didn't… We didn't see it." The pain in her voice became heart wrenching and Dust whined again. "I am sorry, Dust. I am so… so sorry." Dust's hands were not working right but he managed to get them up to rub the woman holding him. "Ah, Dust…" Her voice gentled. "Always the hero. Always for others. Never a thought for yourself." Everything was wrong. Everything was…off. But the woman holding him was gentle. "We are going to put you in the tank, but… I don't know, Dust. I don't know if we can help you. We couldn't help Lisa when that scum took her. When you rescued her and were lost. Maybe…" The world fell away.

* * *

"Dust!" Another voice, loud and horrified. The tone alone woke Dust immediately. He felt… odd. Weak. Also female, the other voice –did he know it? It was familiar- quickly turned angry. "What did you _scum_ do to him?"

"We missed a trap, sister." The first female said sadly. "Inside his mind. It was laid in case… In case we found him again. We missed it. This is temporary. He will be all right in a few hours. We had to… reset some things, but he will recover."

"This is what you did to that _girl_!" The second female voice nearly screamed. "Me next?"

"We _didn't_ do it to Lisa!" The first voice snapped, irate. "Lisa was special. She was always singing, always cheerful. Then… they took her. Dust… went after the people who took her. We followed and we found her. Damaged. Dust was gone." Now the voice was sad, so sad. "And now? He is still gone. The man we knew… The Tenno I admired… This is his shell. Not him."

"What are you talking about?" The second voice was guarded, wary.

"Why did he shoot you, Tenno Jasmina?" The first voice asked softly as Dust whined, worried by the emotion in the room. A hand rubbed his arm and he relaxed. "When I found him a year ago… I, ah… I seduced him. It wasn't hard. We had a connection even though he didn't remember it. He told me about that, shooting you, his confinement. Not everything. He keeps secrets like no one's business."

"How do you know my name now?" The other asked even more warily.

"We share something, sister." The first voice aid softly. "We both have been enriched by our relationship with Dust. Do you know why he shot you?"

"No." The other voice said flatly. "Maybe you programmed him to."

"Do you remember it all? Where you were? What you were doing?" The first voice said softly. "You liked him. Didn't you?"

"That is none of your business!" The other snapped.

"On the contrary." The first voice replied without heat. "Dust was the greatest of us. He felt… for all of us. He was… so empathic." The sadness in her words called to Dust and he rubbed her skin again, whining, trying to comfort. "He still is. Hurt and confused, and he is so… empathic." She sounded as if she were crying. Dust tried to comfort her and she stroked his skin again. "Dust shot you and was captured and then confined. Do you know how long?"

"Two hundred years." Jasmina's voice was soft.

"Is _that_ what they told you, sister?" The first voice asked sadly. "Think. He was in there when you went into cryo." Jasmina gasped and the other spoke softly. "He was in there when you came _out_. He doesn't _remember_ it, thank the _ancestors_. He told me it blurred. It did more than he knew. I tried to help him when I saw him after that mission. I couldn't. I was going to try and get him here when I saw Redi and fled." Hands eased Dust back to where he had woken. He felt uncomfortable, but did not resist as the hands did… things to him. Pulled things from his body. He didn't struggle. Somehow, he knew this kind female would not hurt him.

"What does _Redi_ have to do with this?" Jasmina asked cautiously. "And what are you doing to Dust?"

"In order, sister Jasmina…" The kind female said as Dust found himself flat on his back, hands rubbing his shoulders gently to soothe sore muscles. "Redi has _everything_ to do with this and I am…" She paused. When she spoke again, it was careful. "Sister, I need the truth. Do you love Dust?"

"What kind of a question is _that_, traitor?" The one called Jasmina snapped angrily. "You really expect me to tell you _that_?"

"Sister Jasmina…" The voice said, her tone hardening to the point where Dust whimpered. The hand soothed him again and she rattled off a series of alphanumeric characters that meant nothing to Dust. Jasmina gasped. "I could _order_ you to tell me, but I won't. You wouldn't obey in all likelihood. It's not really any of my business. But it may be his only chance. If we had found Lisa in time…" Her voice broke.

"You… You can't be… This isn't possible!" Jasmina said with a snarl. "This is a trick! A lie! A…"

"Sister." The first voice said softly. "Dust was the eldest, our acknowledged leader. When he vanished, the burden fell to me. I am a Caretaker of the Unclean." Dust whined, something about those words…

"All of the Caretakers _died_ when the Infested broke loose!" Jasmina snapped. "When the containment failed."

"No." The other said sadly. "Not _all_. There are three of us left scattered about the system. Dust, me… and Redi."

"You lie!" The other snapped. "Again, you lie."

"I will prove it to you, sister Jasmina." The first voice said softly. "But right now, our brother needs help."

"_My_ help?" Jasmina asked, confused and irate. "What can I do, locked to this bed?"

"Sister Jasmina…" The first voice said gently. "There is power in feeling for others. There is a great deal of power in wanting to help others less fortunate than you. If I know _anything_ from my centuries of meditation and watchful guardianship, I know that. Your mind is your own, Sister Jasmina. We will not interfere with it. _He_ wouldn't want us to." A gentle hand stroked Dust's forehead. "But you can help him. When I leave this room, the restraints holding you will unlock."

"You never answered me." The other said sharply. "How do you know my name?"

"We looked into Dust's mind, trying to find the damage to repair it. We found your name there." The first voice said quietly. "We cannot repair him. But _you_ can."

"_Me?_" Jasmina said, startled. "I am no healer."

"You do not need to be." The other said gently. "In this room, at this time, healing power can concentrate. But it needs a focus. A point of contact. I was going to do it. I owe him so much more than that." A whisper of cloth, someone had dropped something. Jasmina made a strangled noise and the other laughed kindly. "I prefer Tenno like you, sister. It has been… a _long_ time." Jasmina gasped and now the voice turned crestfallen. "Oh… I am an _idiot_! Sister, forgive me. I had no right to embarrass you like that. It has been… a long time."

"I don't have a problem with people who feel that way." Jasmina said with a somewhat strained sound that was half laugh, half moan. "But I prefer men."

"Sister Jasmina…" The other said urgently. "Our brother _can_ be healed. But as in all things, there is a cost." She sighed. "I will pay it if you cannot."

"What cost?" Jasmina asked slowly, then paused. Whatever was passing between the two women was visual. "I…see…"

"I don't know what will happen after, sister." The other said urgently. "But we need to fix the damage soon. If it heals like this, he will be like Lisa."

"Over my dead body." Jasmina said quietly. "And… when he wakes? This would be technically non-consensual."

"I wasn't planning to _tell_ him." The other said with a sigh. "He is so… overpoweringly _noble_ sometimes. He would not react well." A hand stroked his forehead again and then withdrew.

"Yeah." Jasmina agreed sadly. "That _is_ Dust. I'll do it. For him. After, we are _enemies_." She said flatly.

"I will try to find a way to convince you otherwise, but I understand your feelings. Better than you could ever know." The other said quietly. "But for now, our brother is all that matters." A hiss and then a clank. A door had shut.

"For now." Jasmina agreed. Clicks sounded and then Dust felt a presence approach. "Ah, Dust…" Jasmina said sadly. "This is _not_ how I wanted to do this, Dust. Not even close…"

Soft hands suddenly touched Dust and he felt… He…

* * *

Dust jerked awake, sure that something was terribly wrong. He was lying on a bed, alone. Why did that feel… wrong? He did not move. Instead, he looked around through slitted eyes, taking in his surroundings. The room was small and comfortable, but… odd. The walls and ceiling had masses of Infested flora growing on them. But he felt… good. He remembered the fight. Elenia had cast Bullet Attractor on him, so _all_ of the shots fired at him had hit him, despite his teleports. Then… his memory faded. Everything faded. Where was he? What had happened? He was alone in the room, the only other furniture a low chair that had clothes piled on it. He sat up slowly, aware of the motion of air around him, so wherever he was had good ventilation. Air ducts made good entry and egress point but he couldn't see the access points. Good designs.

He sat up, checking all of his extremities, but nothing hurt. He felt a twinge on his head, but when he explored his scalp with his fingers, nothing presented itself. He rose from the bed and walked to the chair. The clothes turned out to be a Tenno bodysuit and boots. His size. He shook his head as he dressed. Something was very, very wrong here. He pulled the boots on, aware that he had to be under observation. He had been captured, that was clear. But by who? Infested did not take prisoners. They consumed. Or… His mind fuzzed for a moment and he shivered as a fragment of memory tried to coalesce. But then it faded. He felt... Off. Not bad. Not wrong. Just off. He moved to the sole door and hit the open command, ready for anything. Or so he thought.

"Good morning, Dust." Elenia said from where she knelt nearby, her Mag warframe glistening in the soft light. "Did you sleep well?" Dust's eyes narrowed as he looked around, but never quite took his awareness away from her. She was armed, but… not hostile. "I don't doubt that you are confused, brother." Eliana said with a sigh. "This has been… rough. For all of us."

Another form was sitting in seiza by one wall. The human female had been crying, her face was red and the streaks of tears still shone. But her eyes were alight with intelligence and compassion as she returned Dust's gaze. His eyes narrowed, this was the woman who he had encountered before. The one who had claimed to be the girl's mother. He looked at Elenia who nodded.

"Dust, this is Helga." Elenia confirmed quietly. "Lisa's mother. She wanted to talk to you."

"You seem to have a captive audience." His dry quip brought a small smile to the woman's face. It was there and gone, but she relaxed a little.

"You hurt Lisa." The woman said softly. "We all heard her scream." Dust nodded. "But you say she lives." Hope warred with caution in the woman's voice and eyes.

"She does." Dust said with a nod, not moving from the door. "I didn't know why she shot me. I didn't know what was going on. I needed information. Healers are tending her now. The prognosis is… not good. But she _does_ live." The woman sighed, nodded and sank back on her heels. "The ones who have her will protect her."

"And Redi?" Elenia said softly. Dust stiffened and Elenia nodded. "We… perused some of your mind, Dust. We had to, to save your life."

"I didn't know he was involved until it was too late." Dust said, trying to work past the surge of anger that erupted inside him. Both from the violation of his mind and from memory of the Oberon. "He tricked the doctors and Tenno who had her, he took her and hurt her. He took… parts of her brain out." Helga gasped but Eliana was still as ice. "We caught him, imprisoned him. Karl…" He paused and looked at Elenia. "You know Karl?" The Mag nodded and Dust continued. "Karl's people have her safe and secure. Healer Iriana is tending her."

"Karl's people…" Elenia mused. "Maybe _they_ can find a way to help her where _we_ failed. They have… excellent resources." She said to Helga who had wilted and put her face in her hands, tears falling.

"I am sorry I hurt your kid, Ma'am." Dust said sadly. "I didn't know what was going on. All I saw was a human in the midst of Infested acting oddly. A human who attacked me. I don't fight humans, Ma'am. I protect them. Removing her from the situation seemed the best of bad choices."

"That is abundantly clear." Helga said with a sigh. She bowed her head to Dust. "Thank you for helping her. She is… A good soul."

"Yes." Dust agreed. "Yes, she is." Helga nodded again rose and left the room. Dust didn't move. "Now what?" He asked Elenia who hadn't moved. "Where is Jasmina?"

"Recovering." Elenia said softly. "She was the focus that put healing energy into your body." Dust stared at her, not comprehending and Elenia sighed. "Look, Dust. We have made mistakes. We hurt you. We tripped a trap inside your head. One left there in case we found you."

"Who is 'we'?" Dust queried, still not moving.

"Are you going to stay in the door all day?" Elenia asked sourly.

"Considering that as soon as I step forward, I am going to get hit by something… yeah." Dust agreed mildly.

"We need to protect ourselves, Dust." Elenia said quietly. "That is my charge. To protect these people. I have kept that charge." She waved, but not to him.

"Which… _people_?" Dust asked in a very soft voice. His eyes went very wide as an Infested Charger moved from where it had been out of his line of sight to stand protectively by Elenia. It growled softly at him, but she laid a hand on its misshapen shoulder and it subsided. "I see." He said flatly.

"No." Elenia said sadly. "No, you don't. You don't remember what our bosses did. What they told us to do. What we did. And then… what they _ordered_…" Her voice broke and Dust went still as the Charger nuzzled her with its oddly shaped front. It was trying to _comfort_ her! "The _horror_ that they demanded we do despite our concerns, our wishes. Our… love for our charges."

"You are empathizing with an Infested." Dust said, as if verbalizing the insanity would make it less impossible.

"No." Elenia said flatly. "I am _communicating_ with them." Dust stared at her and then he burst out laughing. The Charger hissed at him, but Elenia's hand kept it in place. She looked at the Charger for a long moment. Then it _bowed to her and left the room!_

"Nice trick." Dust said, nonplussed.

"It's not a trick, Dust." Elenia said mildly. "I asked him to leave as he was stressing you. He didn't want to. They feel… protective of me. But I convinced him."

"I can't believe a word you are saying." Dust said with a snap. "For all I know this is a virtual world interrogation."

"We got any information we might want, Dust." Elenia said, still quiet. "We don't want to hurt you. If you believe nothing else I say, please believe that. Lars pushed for a conflict. He is grieving for Lisa. He believes you killed her and will not accept any evidence except her. Here and whole."

"That would be hard to do, since I don't even know where 'here' _is_." Dust said, shaking his head. "And I highly doubt you are just going to 'let' me go get her."

"Especially since if I _do_ let you go without explaining the situation, you would bring back a host of Tenno and wipe us out before we could explain." Elenia said, her tone clinical. Dust looked at her and she shrugged. "It's what I would do. You taught me well."

"Where is Jasmina?" Dust repeated.

"Healing. She will be for some time. The flow of power hurt her." Elenia said sadly. "I would have done it, but she did. She is currently sleeping in a pod filled with a restorative gel."

"The kind of pod Brow- "Lisa' was in." Dust said slowly. "An Infested pod. Changing her or brainwashing her?"

"_Healing_ her." Elenia said with a sigh. "She is… very strong. She held the power longer than any of us thought even a _Tenno_ could." She nodded to Dust. "Hence why you feel no different."

"But I am." Dust countered. "What have you done to me?"

"Saved your life." Elenia said softly. "And now, I can start to explain."

"This I _have_ to hear." Dust said, still not moving. "How you wound up betraying our kind to the Infested."

"I didn't, Dust." Elenia said with a sigh. "I followed you when _you_ did."


	13. Chapter 13

**Past Mistakes**

"When _I_ did?" Dust enunciated, still not moving. "And _when_ was this?" He asked, not amused.

"When the people in charge of the 'Union Project' told us to send all of our subjects to the front lines to be cannon fodder." Elenia said quietly. "During the War."

"'Union Project'?" Dust asked sarcastically. "As in 'the action or fact of joining or being joined'?"

"I don't know _what_ they originally envisioned the project as being." Elenia said with a shrug. "By the time I came along and joined, it was an attempt to communicate with the Infested." Dust stared at her and then shook his head. "I know you do not believe and I do not blame you. I didn't believe at first either. But you won me over."

"I…_won_ _you over_?" Dust asked, incredulous.

"You do not remember." Elenia said sadly. "They took your memories. Literally removed them. We can only guess why, but… Tracking us was a likely reason. But that was after you ran afoul of Jasmina and were captured and locked up. Then the Collapse." Dust's eyes narrowed and Elenia nodded. "You were in that cell a lot longer than you thought."

"There is no _way_…" Dust began, but paused as Elenia held up a hand. "What?" He demanded.

"At least hear me out." She pleaded. "Please?" Dust scowled, but nodded and took a step into the room before kneeling in seiza. "The Union Project was an effort to figure out where the Infested came from and why they evolved as they did. By talking to them." Dust did not interrupt and she continued. "The J-3 project and the mass that became Lephantis were other attempts at creating weapons. First just to _do_ it to prove they _could_ and then for use against the Sentients, but the Union Project was far, far older. There is some evidence that says that the original project dates back to the time of the First Tenno." Dust jerked a bit at that and Elenia nodded. "We cannot corroborate it, but it was a very old project. I personally saw hundreds of years' worth of records. If it was faked…" She shrugged. "It was an _exceptional_ fake." Dust just looked at her and she sighed again. "When I joined the Project, I was young, just out of training. I expected to be sent to a monastery or a stint at patrol. Instead I was sent to what was, for all intents and purposes, a zoological testing center."

"Zoological." Dust murmured, but waved for Elenia to continue.

"When I arrived, there were five others on the team." The Mag said calmly. "You, a Nyx named Song, an Excalibur named Pikol, a Rhino named Eustace and Redi." Dust jerked and Elenia nodded. "You were the lead, Song and Pikol were our translators. Pikol was a linguist and Song was an empath in addition to her powers. Eustace was our tech. He was very good."

"Redi?" Dust asked slowly.

"Our medical specialist." Elenia said with a scowl that was visible even through her closed faceplate. "We truly believed that communication was possible. We all worked as caretakers. The other Tenno called us 'Caretakers of the Unclean' and we took it as our badge of honor. It was a crummy job, but it was all ours."

"What happened?" Dust asked despite his skepticism.

"For a long time, nothing." Elenia said softly. "Then one day, Song had a fit. At least, that was what we _thought_ it was. But there was nothing to cause it. No physiological cause, no psychological cause. We beat our heads against the impossibility of an epileptic fit with no _cause_ for a week. Then it happened again when Redi was working with one of the subjects."

"_Subjects?_" Dust asked pointedly.

"Yes." Elenia said sadly. "Despite our care and strict protocols regarding transmission of the virus, there were always people who ignored the rules, for whatever reason. We never lacked for people who had been exposed to the virus. We… watched them change." She shuddered a bit. "We tried to communicate at every opportunity, but never saw anything in return. Not until Song had her fit. Not that it _was_ one." She said in rueful hindsight. "Now, it is so clear. But back then? How could we _possibly_ know that an Infested group mind was trying to talk to _us_?" Dust jerked and Elenia nodded. "Pikol figure it out first. That every time Song had a fit, a specific series of neural impulses were traveling through Redi's subjects."

"And what was Redi doing?" Dust asked slowly.

"Examining the subjects under strict quarantine conditions." Elenia said softly. "We were all under lockdown. The entire facility was based on a ship, and the… pens that were used… The containment facilities… were in a pocket of the Void."

"Pens…" Dust said, stunned.

"Consolidating the people who had been infected with the virus simply made _sense_." Elenia said softly. "What no one anticipated was that the warping of the Void would twist the subjects. Not always into even more bestial natures. But some… the _other_ way." Dust froze, his eyes going wide and she nodded. "I am not going to pretend that they were civilized. Not as we know it. Not even close. But for them… it was all biomass. They were all parts of the whole. Part of the greater."

"You almost had me." Dust said, sinking back on his heels. "But that is _insane_. I have fought Infested. They are _nothing_ like that."

"No." Elenia said sadly. "The one you, we Tenno, have fought… Here and now…" She shook her head and he could swear she was crying. "No, they are not."

"What happened?" Dust asked softly. "If… if you _can_ communicate…"

"_We_ happened." Elenia said bitterly. "Or more accurately, _Redi_ happened. He… He wanted to find a cure. He was obsessed with finding a _cure_. Even when Song and the rest of us begged him to stop, he kept up his experiments. His…dissections. His manipulations."

"No." Dust said with a swallow. "He didn't…" Then he shook himself. "Well, knowing him… Yes, I bet he _did_."

"It gets worse." Elenia said sadly. "You were in charge and he went behind your back, kept doing what he said he had stopped. We didn't notice. The rest of us were elated. We had _finally_ found a way to talk to the Infested. Or… to _some_ of them." She shook her head. "We managed to open a dialogue with a massed mind of Infested. About three thousand smaller forms grouped together in a mass of flesh and power. They were so… naïve, but so _smart_ as well. The power… Dust… The power was intoxicating. We all knew there was danger. We stepped back. Well, all but one of us."

"Redi didn't, did he?" Dust said, feeling his guts start to clench.

"No." Elenia said sadly. "He had his own section here he did his own things. He was our medic and worked with us, but… mostly stayed apart. We didn't know what was happening. The war was… bad. But the Infested had to remain contained, and that was our job. There were… probing attacks. Some harrying of the ship we were on. But I think the Sentient knew, or guessed what the ship held and left it alone. That was your thought anyway and the rest of us shared it. We were busy, and ecstatic that we had succeeded."

"Smart of them." Dust agreed. "What happened?"

"Redi did something horrible." Elenia said softly. "He hurt the mind mass. I am not sure how. I wasn't as up on the tech as Song and Pikol were. The mind mass recoiled and lashed out. Pikol… was caught in the blast and incinerated despite his warframe. Song was mortally wounded. Her last action was to enter the containment vessel." Dust froze at that and Elenia nodded. "She died trying to soothe the hurt Infested. It worked. They subsided. But then she _died_ and we couldn't pull her out."

"And then?" Dust asked.

"You and Eustace confronted Redi, disabled him and confined him. I was…" She swallowed hard. "I was caught in the backlash. I was a mess. I didn't blame them for hurting me. I mean, they had been so… curious. Then they were angry. Song calmed them, but then she was _gone_. You contacted HQ and was told to 'hold position for new orders'." She was shaking now.

"New orders?" Dust asked, his guts sinking further.

"The war had turned worse." Elenia bowed her head. "We had been… isolated. HQ saw a new weapon and jumped on it. We tried to tell them. They wouldn't _listen_. They ordered us to comply, to let the Infested loose. We warned them…" She begged Dust. "We _all_ warned them, even _Redi_! They wouldn't _listen_. They sent warriors to 'control the situation'."

"Oh no…" Dust said, seeing where this was going.

"A team of warriors came." Elenia said with a sigh. "They were… harsh. Understandable. We had been isolated enough not to directly affected by the war. We hadn't seen…what they had. But…"

"Jasmina." Dust said softly.

"Yes." Elenia agreed. "I never learned her name. I… You told me to obey their commands and I _did!_ I swear I didn't mean to… To leave you like that!" She was babbling and Dust shook his head.

"Elenia, calm down." Dust said gently. "I need to know what happened."

"What _happened_?" Elenia snapped. "We didn't _know_ what Redi had _done_! He… They… I…" She stammered and then slumped in her sorrow. Dust went still as the door behind Elenia opened and the form of an Infested Ancient Healer shambled in. It touched Elenia on the shoulder and she relaxed a little. She smiled up at it. "Thank you, Healer. Just the memories hurt." The Infested looked at Dust and he could _swear_ it was chiding him, telling him to be gentle. Then it _left!_ Elenia chuckled a bit wetly. "You should _see_ your expression."

"It's not every day I get 'The Look' from an Infested." Dust said with a chortle. Elenia laughed and relaxed.

"Healer can be a bit…protective." Elenia said with a sigh. "Marishia was… She was always on the edge of feral. We worried she was losing it." She paused. "Could the _Lotus_ have known? No…" She mused. "How _could_ she have?" Dust made an interrogatory noise and she jerked. "Sorry, thinking aloud."

"What did Redi do, Elenia?" Dust asked softly.

"You saw the humans." Elenia said just as softly. Dust nodded and she continued. "He took them. Recruited them and took them as his own servants. 'Medical studies' he said. Instead, he used them. He crafted those garments for them. Garments that repel the Technocyte virus."

"Redi…crafted…" Dust said slowly, shaking his head. "Why?"

"He needed lab assistants." Elenia said with a snarl. "He didn't tell us about them. About the fact that he did things to them that made them slaves." Dust jerked and Elenia nodded. "You are I were both horrified when the warriors went in and found an entire _town_ of humans working in the containment facilities. Almost a hundred and fifty of them. He had been…" She shook her head. "At least he didn't _clone_ them, but he did _change_ them."

"Change them how?" Dust demanded, his posture going stiff again.

"They are still human." Elenia reassured him. "Genetically they are still baseline human. But the garments he put them in… They are almost warframes. Not as dangerous perhaps, but just as dedicated to protecting the user."

"So when the warriors came…" Dust said softly.

"They took control and then took you, me and Eustace to secure Redi. We got to see Redi's handiwork." Elenia said quietly. "He was _proud_ of it. Crowing about how he would aid humanity to evolve and become the 'master race' it was destined to be. We were all horrified, both us and the warrior team. He had taken Infested flesh to research. He had used our resources to make those garments. To enslave those people."

"Enslave…" Dust said, horrified.

"Yeah." Elenia said sadly. "The thing is… they didn't know any better. He had protected them, kept them from succumbing to the infection. Redi was…um…" She chucked a little sourly. "He was very surprised to see the warriors and even _more_ surprised when they took him into custody. I tried to explain to the humans what had happened, but they saw their savior get taken away in chains. It… didn't end well." She said softly. "No one died, but they were very upset. If only…" She trailed off, shaking her head.

"What?" Dust asked carefully.

"If only we had remembered." Elenia said softly. "What is the _one_ absolute truth of humans? What do humans and Tenno do better than _anything_ else in existence?"

"We _hate_." Dust said softly. Elenia nodded.

"The facility cared for them, provided for their needs, but they had nothing to do with Redi gone." Elenia said sadly. "Nothing to do except wait. And plan." She shook her head. "And when the warriors were ordered to release the Infested on Sentient targets… They acted." She shrugged. "I don't really blame them. We were agents of chaos. We disrupted their world."

"What happened?" Dust asked gently when she trailed off.

"We were ordered to open portals from the containment facility to various targets." Elenia said sadly. "To let the Infested run rampant through areas that the Sentients controlled. Once they had a foothold, there was _no_ way for them to be stopped. Except…" She said quietly. "By killing them all." Dust went still and she nodded. "Scorched Earth didn't work for the Sentients, but it _did_ for the Infested. Things had gotten… desperate."

"So… You did?" Dust asked slowly.

"_Hell no_!" Elenia snapped. "We all agreed. Even _Redi_ said it was the absolute _worst_ idea that HQ had _ever_ come up with. We demanded confirmation, clarification, all kinds of things to try and get the _idiots_ at HQ to realize how _bad_ an idea it was. Sure… let the _single_ most virulent toxin _known_ loose on vast swathes of the Solar System? 'How much of the system do you want to have _left'_?" She chuckled at that. "That was a direct quote actually, from you when they told you to 'stop arguing and do it'."

"If they really thought we could talk to them…" Dust mused. "Then maybe they thought we could stop them?"

"I don't know." Elenia said sadly. "They ordered the warriors to take over the facility and _they_ did. They ordered us confined and we were. We didn't even know what was happening until the humans broke containment…"

"The _humans_ broke containment…?" Dust asked, trying to keep incredulity from his tone.

"Yeah." Elenia said, her tone a mix of sad and proud. "They didn't have modern weapons, but… The warriors didn't want to fight them. The humans couldn't fight warframes, so they… opened up some of Redi's other cells. The Infested in those… hadn't been talking to us. They were all bestial, or worse."

"Oh boy…" Dust said, shaking his head. "I think I can figure what happened. I don't… quite remember… I was in my warframe and Jasmina stepped in front of me."

"We had been placed under house arrest, given our words of honor not to interfere. We thought that saner heads would prevail." Elenia said sadly. "We were wrong. None of us had a clue what was happening, just that alarms went off and Infested were loose in the corridors. We were not tied into the warrior's tac net and they were not tied into ours. No one knew where anyone else was. We grouped up and moved to the control center. When we did, a mob of feral infested attacked us. We had no weapons except our warframes, but they were enough for that fight. We got to an arms locker and you refused to arm Redi. You slammed the locker in his face, calling him a monster. He ah… did not take it well." She said in a tone of massive understatement.

"And then?" Dust asked.

"You and I were trying to disable rather than kill, Redi was keeping us standing." Elenia said sadly. "Then I was hit from behind. I don't know if a warrior shot me or a human. They had primitive arms that they had managed to get the systems to fabricate for them. Crude single shot firearms, but powerful. I saw you spin and as you fired, an Ember warframe stepped between you and your target. She went down hard." Dust exhaled sharply. "It wasn't your fault, Dust!" She said sharply.

"I remember that." Dust said in a monotone. "I used a Burston. All three rounds hit her back. I…"

"It _wasn't_ your fault!" Elenia snapped. "I… I don't remember much after that. Pain. Screams. You ordering me to hide. I crawled into a cupboard and fell asleep. When I woke, an Infested Ancient was looking at me. I had no room to draw my bow. I was so scared, but it didn't attack. It retreated. It stayed away as I extricated myself. As I explored the wreck that was left of the facility. You were gone. Everyone was gone. I… I think I fell apart for a while."

"Don't blame you." Dust was reeling and she had to be too.

"Then I heard a voice." Elenia said, as if she hadn't heard him. "It sounded kind of like Song. She told me to follow and then the Ancient moved off. I didn't have anything else to do, so I followed. We went through a portal that fizzled after we passed and wound up in the cave you saw."

"The cave." Dust said slowly. "'Home'."

"One part of Home. This is one part of the portal nexus that we have used to hide ever since." Elenia agreed. "At the time, fifty six humans, thirty seven lesser Infested, two Ancients and me." She shook her head. "I was… in shock. They took care of me. Tended me, comforted me. Called me Champion. Then you came. I was…" She shook herself.

"What?" Dust asked her.

"You were torn up." Elenia said softly. "Your warframe was damaged, but you were worse inside. You said… You said that you had killed that sister. You didn't."

"Nearly did." Dust said softly. "Rookie mistake, should have checked my target."

"She _stepped_ in front of you as you _fired_, Dust. Neither of you _knew_ the other was there. Not _her_ fault _or_ yours!" Elenia snapped. "You always were stubborn. No wonder they called you insane and locked you up."

"What do you know of that?" Dust asked softly. "You say I _saved_ Lisa?"

"You saved us _all_."


	14. Chapter 14

**Ghosts of Memory**

**The past**

"You know it's a trap!" Elenia said as she stood by the door, looking with entreaty at the two huge Infested who served as wardens. Both Healer and the Disruptor that had never taken a name looked away. Her warframe, as always was immaculate. It self-repaired. Now if only the _souls_ within could do the same.

"Of course it is a trap." Dustin said quietly as he checked his gear. Not that he had much. Years on the run had taken their toll even with limited access to maintenance facilities. His Braton, Lato and Skana were… worn. They still functioned as when he had first assembled them, but they all felt… tired. As tired as he did. Ammunition was also getting hard to come by. Elenia had a mutation system for her Cernos bow, but Dustin was down to fifty rounds for his Braton MK-1 and thirty for his Lato. Luckily, his Skana never ran out of ammunition. "Why else leave a note?"

When Lisa had disappeared, initially no one had been alarmed. She was a smart girl but prone to running off at odd times. As the only child had been the only human born into this odd life, the Infested doted on her, the humans adored her and the two Tenno sworn to protect the whole, well… The girl wasn't spoiled per say. But she was also not going to 'let' roam alone. It hadn't been until the two Chargers that had been with Lisa were found slain by Tenno weapons that the community had gone into 'danger mode.' The humans were packing up their few belongings, the Infested standing guard while Elenia and Dustin were going to see about the note that had been found by the two slain Infested.

A small piece of paper with one word 'Come' and a set of coordinates.

Dustin had wanted to go immediately, but his duty had been to safeguard the others, human and Infested alike. The title 'Caretaker' was both an honor and a duty. Before, other Tenno had denigrated the few who served as guards for the pens that held Infested away from the general populace. There was no cure for the Technocyte Virus, so segregation –however wrong it felt- was the only choice.

"I should go with you." Elenia said softly.

"And let them have _both_ of us?" Dustin replied evenly. "You know better, sister." He looked at the Infested and nodded. "Take care of her, please."

_We will._ The Ancient known as 'Healer' replied in a sad tone. _We will send as many as we can find to aid you__._

"Just get the noncombatants out of here as quickly as you can." Dustin said with a sigh as he finished his check and started for the exit to the cave. He paused as Elenia embraced him, she was crying. "Hey…" He said gently. 'It's okay, sister. Sneaking around is what I _do_."

"And the ones hunting us _know_ that." Elenia said with a shiver. "Dustin… I…"

"Be strong, Elenia." Dustin said softly. "Our charge remains. Now more than ever, we are needed. The group mind that we created must not be left alone to fall to insanity. We will not forsake our duty. Even if others wish us to. Or demand that we do so."

"I…" Elenia swallowed hard, then stepped back and bowed deeply. "Be safe and swift, brother." The two Ancients bowed as well, then Dustin was gone.

The habitats felt…wrong. This part of Europa had seen some of the most savage fighting between the Sentients and the Orokin. Hundreds of small enclaves of humanity had been wiped out in the process as well as some larger ones. The stillness of the habitats writ large the fate of the entire Solar system. With feral Infested loose in many places, the Sentients were being pushed back for the first time in most human's memory. But Dustin knew that the façade of peace was just that, a façade. The Infested would break the meager containments that the Orokin had created to ward them off. It wasn't matter of _if_, it was a matter of _when_. But Dustin had more immediate problems.

He and Elenia had assumed guardianship over the small band of rogues who had hidden away from the Tenno, the Orokin and the rest of the Infested. The humans were… He shook his head as he stalked through the still habitat. Even now, he cursed Redi almost as much as he cursed his own lack of foresight. The blame for the mess that the small bad was in lay firmly on Dustin's shoulders. After the mess at the facility, he had fled with Redi, thinking to find HQ, to explain. But Redi hadn't wanted to go. The pair had spent some time, Dustin trying to get some sense of what had possessed the being he had once called friend. Why Redi had violated his oath, his ethics, _everything_ in the pursuit of knowledge. Truth be told Dustin had needed the companionship. The accidental shooting of a sister during the confrontation at the facility had hurt him sorely. He was a professional. Weapons and by extension, weapon safety, were his life. Redi had been a vivid listener. But then one day, Dustin had woken and Redi was gone. So he had gone to find out of any of his charges still lived. To his joy, not only had they, but Elenia had survived as well. She was a good sister.

Now… Dustin slowed, listening and scanning with every system he had available as he approached the open air plaza that was the coordinates given. His head spun with plans and counter plans. Lisa.

Lisa, the daughter of Lars and Helga, was the only human child to be born to the group since the mess at the containment facility. Healer –the Ancient who had befriended Elenia and Dustin- seemed to think it was something to do with the garments that Redi had 'gifted' his servants with. But it could not be sure. One thing that everyone was sure of was that Lisa was amazing. Five years old and already doing calculus in her head, able to discuss the merits of various political and sociological systems, and even to read at a college level of comprehension, the girl was downright frightening at times in how she simply absorbed information. But she was also kind, gentle, cheerful and funny. There was something wrong with her, everyone agreed that. But Healer could find no physical abnormalities. So she was guarded and treasured.

Now, she had been taken. And he could guess why.

He went still in cover as he saw a shadow lying in the open in the middle of the plaza. Tall structures of metal and stone surrounded the area, giving concealment to any who lay in wait. His sensors could not detect any hostiles, but he knew they were there. The same way that they likely knew that _he_ was here. Tenno, like him. Subterfuge was pointless at this juncture, so he stepped forward boldly. He was halfway to where a small human form lay crumpled on the not-grass ground cover of the habitat when an Ember warframe stepped out from behind one of the columns. He did not start visibly when he recognized her, but he did quail inside. He did not raise his rifle. Neither did she.

"Dustin." The Ember said quietly. "Surrender."

"Did you hurt the girl?" Dustin said, still striding towards where the girl lay. He could see bandages on her skull. The Ember moved to block his path and he shook his head, but kept walking. "If you did, you have _no_ claim to honor."

"We did not." The Ember said calmly. "She was that way when we arrived. We will see her to medical care."

"_Sure_ you will." Dustin scoffed. He carefully did not look at a storm drain near the girl. One that a silent pseudopod was slowly edging out of towards Lisa. "She is… What was the _word_ HQ used?" He asked sarcastically. "_Collateral._" He said with a snap and the Ember actually recoiled. He pressed his advantage. "_Meaning_less. _Use_less. Only good for _fodder or slave labor_. _Right_?" He paused for a moment to dampen down his anger.

"I said it before and I say it again, Dustin." The Ember said slowly. "They were _wrong_. But we were given an order."

"A _stupid_ order!" Dustin shouted. "Not only did they tell us to _abrogate_ our _oaths_, they gave us an _order_ that flew in the face of _all_ common sense _and_ survival. Sure, just _let_ the feral Infested loose. Let them run around without restraint of any kind. Sure, the Sentients cannot assimilate them. But then _we_ cannot stop them." He paused as the Ember froze. "_Can_ we?" He asked softly. She shook her head and Dustin sighed. "That girl is not yours. Leave now in peace. Or die." He tightened his grip on his rifle.

"Brother…" The Ember pleaded. "What happened was bad, yes. What is happening now is worse. We need you."

"What you need is a fricking _shrink_!" Dustin said with a snarl worthy of a Charger. "And HQ needs their heads removed from their rear ends."

"HQ is _gone_, Dustin. Infested overran it and the self-destructs went off." The Ember said softly and Dustin went still. "We are all we have left. Surrender, brother. I do not wish to kill kin."

"Neither do I, sister." Dustin said with a sigh. "But you and I _both_ know the penalty for disobeying orders in wartime." Death. "You have to catch me first!"

"Dustin!" She called, but he had activated his smoke screen…

A pulse of energy went around him and he snarled internally as he started for cover, the unseen Banshee's sonar painting him despite his Invisibility. He ran to one of the columns and then up it lightly, evading the sudden flurry of low power shot that were fired at him. They didn't want him dead any more than he wanted _them_ dead, so… He ran up to the top and, with a small flip, leaped from the top of the column to another. He was…

Suddenly, Dustin was grabbed by something and pulled down. He landed in a roll and came up, his Skana in hand. Five warframes stood around him, four of them armed, four of them ready to fight. The Ember, a Banshee, an Excalibur, a Mag –the one who had pulled him- and…

"_YOU!_" Dustin screamed as he launched himself at Redi. It was hopeless. He knew that, but he _so_ wanted to get his blade into the traitor who had cost him…

A massive impact slammed into him and Dustin went flying. The Excalibur picked up Dustin's Skana from where it had fallen. At least the other Tenno hadn't slashed as he had dashed. If Redi was involved… Lisa… He looked back as the girl's still form vanished into the drain and a grate closed soundlessly. As safe as she could be.

"Stand down, brother." Redi said in a pious voice. "We want to help."

"Riiight." Dust said as he readied himself. "Like you helped Song and Pikol. Like you helped us _all__,_ you lying piece of traitorous _filth_…" He threw himself at the Oberon, Shuriken flying. He had the satisfaction of hearing the Oberon cry out, of seeing rents appear on the pristine warframe. Then several massive objects hit him and he knew no more.

* * *

"Where is she, Dustin?" Redi demanded for the umpteenth time. "I lost the tracker I put in her. She needs help. I want to help her."

Dustin did not respond. He was sitting in a chair, restrained to it actually. It was set up so he could not hurt anyone in it, and could be sedated in seconds if needed. When he had woken, he had been out of his warframe and in a small room. When ordered, he had sat in the chair and it had restrained him. Then Redi had come in and Dust had ignored the other Tenno's increasingly irate demands.

"Out." A familiar female voice said and Redi jerked back from where he had nearly been in range of Dustin's teeth. Pity. "Now!" The Ember snapped as Redi recoiled.

"But… I…" The other male Tenno said, seeming to wilt.

"You have made _enough_ of a mess, Tenno Redi." The Ember said with a snarl. "Get. Out." She said with a snarl worthy of an Infested. He shook his head, but left in silence. The Ember sighed softly. "My name is Jasmina. I don't know if you remember." Dustin did not react, did not move at all and Jasmina sighed again.

"This whole situation is _so_ screwed up." Jasmina complained. "I don't know _what_ HQ had going through their microscopic little minds. I didn't agree with the orders either. But they _were_ orders."

"_First_ rule of being a decent leader…" Dust said in a monotone. "_Never_ give an order than you _know_ will not be obeyed." He spoke very softly, but he knew she –and the interrogation room's recorders- would hear him clearly. "What they ordered was wrong. So… Who is going to pull the trigger on me? _You_?"

"No." Jasmina said sadly. "You are…" She bowed her head. "You have been deemed unstable, not rogue. You will be confined."

"Confined." Dustin said slowly, uncomprehending. Then his eyes went wide. "You cannot be serious? I am _insane_?"

"The… tribunal said confinement." Jasmina said sadly. "I disagreed. I… I am officially censured for my disdain for this ruling."

"They did a psyche evaluation while I was _unconscious?_" Dustin demanded. "_How_?"

"No." Jasmina said, her posture rigid. "They took the evaluation of a registered psychiatrist." Dustin paused, then he went stiff. "Yeah, him. Redi was… prepared."

"That lying sack of- And did you tell them what _he_ did?" Dustin asked, dumbfounded. "How he _screwed_ us all?"

"I did." Jasmina said with a sigh. "They didn't… I wasn't coherent for all of it. He was… persuasive."

"Okay. I am screwed. I apologize, sister." Dustin said softly. "I did not intend to shoot you."

"I know." Jasmina said softly. "For what it is worth… I am sorry."

"For what it is worth… so am I." Then warmth swelled from the injection points in Dustin's thighs and he was falling.

* * *

There were moments of lucidity. A table, bright lights, equipment all around, an Oberon warframe.

"Where did you put her?" Redi demanded. "Damn it, you will screw everything up! I will have it out of you one way or another! I will find her and do what I must, I _will_!"

Dustin screamed as energy bit into his skull and…

* * *

A small cell. A bunk, a small sanitary facility. Nothing else. Nothing to be used as a weapon. Nothing to use period. The bunk did not even have sheets, just a plastic mat. With nothing else to do, Dustin had been counting.

The table again. The Oberon again.

"Where are they? You _will_ tell me!" Redi screamed, reaching for the gear. "You cannot hide the information I need! I will have it out of you physically this time!"

"Redi! No!" A familiar female voice screamed as energy played over Dustin and he sank into agony again.

* * *

He had been counting. He had reached seven million and sixty there when something happened. The lights went out before they were supposed to. Every day, there was a day and night cycle. He counted by his own heartbeats. Twelve hours of light, twelve hours of darkness. But this was off. It had only been five hours. Something was wrong. He was…

"It wasn't your fault, Dustin." A quiet male voice spoke and Dustin jerked from where he had been slumping a bit. He looked up into dark eyes below matted black hair. The man –if he was one- wore a warframe, but… Was it? He looked oddly transparent. The man shrugged and spoke again. "There have always been people who thought to use the Technocyte virus for good or ill. But some tools are too dangerous to use. They had to learn that again. It cost them. It cost them _everything_ this time."

"I tried." Dustin said, his voice hoarse from disuse. Or… screaming.

"You and the other Caretakers did a marvel, Dustin." The odd male Tenno said softly. "I never would have believed in my day that any of the Infected were sentient. Or could be made that way."

"We didn't…" Dustin protested.

"You gave them an example." The man said gently. "The best example possible. I am flabbergasted by what you did. But now…" He shrugged. "The world has ended. Our world is gone."

"That is not possible…" Dust said softly. "What have I done..?"

"It wasn't your fault, Dustin." The man said gently. "You warned them. Even the best of weapons can turn in an unwary hand. It did. Orokin has fallen."

"No…" Dust pleaded. "No…"

"What they unleashed undid them." The man said sadly. "The Infested were only part of it. The rest? There is only so far you can push even the best of the best. Even Tenno can break."

"I… have…" Dustin said, feeling wetness on his cheeks. "I… Can't die… I…"

"You have tried thirty _seven_ times, Dustin." The odd man said softly. "The cell won't let you die. It was built to keep inmates alive."

"If Orokin is gone…" Dust said, grasping at the fringes of his sanity. "Why is the power still on?"

"Backup power systems will last for millennia, Dustin." The man said with a shake of his head. "The life support will keep you going. That is it's program, to keep you alive and whole. You are stuck."

"Can you kill me?" Dust nearly begged. "I… I want an end."

"I know." The man said, his own eyes glistening. "I can't. It is forbidden. I am sorry."

"What… what will happen?" Dustin asked softly.

"I don't know." The man said as the lights came on and then went out again, darkness shrouding the… golden transparent form. "But you are not alone, brother."

"Energy form." Dustin said softly. This being was dead, but not gone. "Who are you? Wait…" He said as a transparent Glaive appeared in the man's hand. His eyes went wide. "_You_…"

"Rest, brother." Hayden Tenno said softly as his form faded. "We will not leave you alone."

* * *

He had lost count. He had lost… so much. Bits of him were fading. Falling away to ashes and dust. Dust. He was dust. Sand through an hourglass. Every so often a golden form would appear and talk to him. But he was finding it harder and harder to talk to _them_. They kept trying to keep him occupied. It was all they could do. But then…

"Dustin…" One of the ghostly Tenno, an Excalibur Prime, pleaded with him. "Talk to me, brother!" He begged.

"Dust…" The man on the bunk said, his eyes closed. ""Dust…"

"Come on, Dustin!" The Excalibur begged. "Don't give up! There is a chance! Soon! Come on!"

"Dust…" The man on the bunk was shaking. But not from fear. From… negation. Nothingness. "Dust…"

"_No!_" The Excalibur screamed and a multitude of voices screamed with him.

* * *

"...and I tell you this _whole_ section lost power!" The male voice was sharp with worry. "We have found nothing but _bodies_. The colony will have to clean the whole area, _decontaminate_ it probably."

"We keep looking. Open it." The female voice was flat. It was… familiar…

Something changed and the man on the bunk went still as something happened that had _never_ happened. The wall… opened. Two forms stood highlighted in the dim light of a corridor, staring into the dark room. Both in warframes. A Vauban and an Ember, both staring at the man in the bunk. The Ember spoke, her tone hesitant.

"Dustin?" She asked. The man on the bunk could barely move, but he managed to shake his head.

"… Dust."


	15. Chapter 15

**Pods **

**The Present**

"Your delaying action allowed one of our allies to extract Lisa." Elenia said sadly. "She was…a mess. Things had been done inside her head. Things neither I nor Healer could figure out. We spent a great deal of time trying." They still sat where they had been while Elenia explained.

"Then I ran into her on Mars." Dust said slowly. This was all starting to come together, in a horrific, evil sort of way. If of course he could believe any of it. "So Redi did things to me while I was in secure detention."

"So we have surmised from the neural scarring. As a registered psychologist, he would have had access. Until everything fell apart anyway." Elenia did not bother to disguise the hate in her voice. "I don't know why he did what he did. But he… took some of your memories out. Healer says the techniques that were used are the same as what was done to Lisa. Your delay allowed us to escape, to get away clean. We have been hiding ever since."

"And when we were placed together for that sabotage mission?" Dust asked slowly.

"At first, I didn't recognize you." Elenia admitted. "You sound nothing like I remember." She bowed her head. "Healer says you did permanent damage to your vocal cords. Probably in captivity. I was… curious. I had seen Tenno moving about and managed to get into the network carefully. I just wanted to see how many of us were left. I never expected to see _you_!" She shook her head. "It wasn't until halfway through the fight that I realized who you were. I was expecting you to approach me, but you didn't. So…" She shrugged and Dust smiled.

"Was it such a burden, sister?" Dust asked quietly. "Seducing me?"

"Worth every moment, brother." Elenia had a leer in her voice but then she sobered. "After… I wanted to tell you." She slumped a bit. "I _should_ have told you. But… Then I saw Redi. He didn't recognize me. I don't _think_ so anyway. I ran and didn't look back. I left you behind. Again." Shame sang in her voice.

"Elenia…" Dust said softly. "I don't know what to believe. But I do know Redi is up to his stinking eyeballs in whatever is going on here. Lisa is a key part of it too. Do you think… he…?" He trailed off.

"Healer looked for any genetic abnormalities in the girl when she was born." Elenia said with a shrug. "We had time. We set up a number of cryo bays." Dust looked at her and Elenia chuckled. "Orokin cryo pods are not the only way to sleep, brother. You should see the cavern that Healer and Marishia built." She slumped a bit.

"I don't think I have said it." Dust said softly. "I am sorry."

"She was… losing it." Elenia said sadly. "I brought Phorid to talk. To try to find a way to help her."

"Talk." Dust tried to keep disbelief from his tone.

"Most of the large masses -the ones called Phorid and J-3 in particular- are a _lot_ smarter than anyone has guessed." Elenia said in the defense of the Infested. "They _act_ feral, but they are not generally. Don't play chess with Phorid." She cautioned. "You will _lose_."

"I… see…" Dust said, swallowing.

"Look…" Elenia said with a sigh. "They reform, okay? They get killed, fall into components and reform. It is _not_ pleasant for them. But they are not mindless generally. Occasionally, all of the Infested act a bit feral and some of the ones we see go totally off the rails. Many of them _have_ gone feral. We help the ones we can, give them a bit of security. A place to rest. That was why J-3 was here when you and Jasmina arrived. They get too large, they go feral, then they get attacked." She shrugged. "You have heard them talk." Dust nodded slowly and she nodded back. "It's not all an act. When they are attacked, they react the same way anyone would. But…" She paused and then shook herself. "Not… _quite_ the way we would."

"What do you mean?" Dust asked, cautious.

"It's kind of hard to explain." Elenia said with a sigh. "The Union Project postulated that Infested shared a hive mind. And as far as it goes, that is true."

"'As far as it goes'?" Dust asked, still cautious.

"What if I told you that what Healer knows… What it experiences… can be felt by _any_ Infested? Or _every_ Infested? Feral or non?" Elenia asked slowly. Dust stared at her and she shook her head. "It is so much easier to _share_ the information mind to mind, but you do not trust me enough to allow it." The last was a flat statement.

"I don't trust anyone, Elenia." Dust said with a shrug. "Nothing personal."

"Would you trust Jasmina's perception?" Elenia asked. "If _she_ told you what she feels?"

"Maybe." Dust said after a moment. "As far as I know, she has never lied to me. But you could be monkeying with her brain even now."

"Come." Elenia said softly as she rose and started for the door. Dust rose and followed, silent, ready.

The door hissed open and Dust stepped out with Elenia into a cave. It had been made comfortable, but it was still a cave. Rock walls and ceilings had been left, but had woven rugs were on the floor and colorful fabric hung in places. It took a moment for Dust to realize that those were walls. He took a few steps and then swallowed as Elenia stepped past one into a small area walled by fabric. In that area, a pod stood upright. In form, it was very similar to an Orokin cryopod, except this pod was made of some kind of blueish green material and he could tell it was alive just by looking at it. It… pulsed. Jasmina was sleeping inside it, her face relaxed from it's usual stern vigilance. An organic tube ran into her mouth, and a mass of flesh was around her jaw. Dust felt a lurch and looked away, but he knew Elenia saw his reaction.

"She will be out for a few more hours." A human male that Dust didn't know –or remember- said to Elenia from a seat beside the pod. He nodded to Dust, but did not speak.

"I thought she was recovering." Elenia said, worried. "What happened?"

"She struggled." The human said softly, his voice worried. "Caretaker... If she struggles too hard…"

"I know." Elenia said sadly. "She will compound the internal damage." Dust looked at her and the Mag sighed. "You were hurt worse, but externally. She is hurt internally. The tube is designed to keep from harming, but if she pulls it…" She shrugged. "She will hurt herself and have to heal for longer."

"She always was stubborn." Dust agreed. "Doesn't look like she will be available though."

"No." Elenia said, slumping. "Dust… I don't know what to say. After all the betrayals, you have no _reason_ to trust. Many reasons not to."

"What are the pods, Elenia?" Dust asked quietly. "And what did you do to Michelle?" Elenia jerked and then sighed.

"I…" Elenia shook her head. "I wasn't here when Michelle was brought in. She was…" She shook her head again. "She was torn to ribbons, Dust. I can show you images. We wanted to help her. The group mind wanted to help her, but didn't know how."

"Elenia…" Dust said quietly, shifting his stance a little. "Don't lie to me." The male at his seat went still as well, his hand on his controls.

"Okay." Elenia snapped. "We _were_ looking to convert her. We failed! We needed _some_ kind of access into the Tenno ranks! After what happened… Do you think _any_ of us can just walk up to a Tenno and ask for help after what Redi did?"

"What are you going to do?" Dust's voice was low and dangerous now.

"If you do not remember us, Dust…" Elenia said sadly. "Then you are as much a threat as Jasmina here is. More. You can lead them to us now."

"Elenia…" Dust said softly. "If you are going to brainwash me, just say it."

"No!" Elenia said sharply. "I won't do _anything_ to you without your permission." Her faceplate retracted and she was crying! "Too many betrayals! Too many lies! Too many…" She sank to her knees as Dust stared at her. "I won't force you to do anything. If you… If you want my life, brother… take it."

"While you are in your warfra-?" Dust choked off as she rose and… stepped out of her warframe which stood like an abandoned husk. Then she knelt again. "Elenia…"

"Do it." Elenia said softly. "If you have to do it, then do it."

"I don't kill kin, Elenia." Dust's face worked, he did not move from where he stood. The human at the console hadn't moved a muscle. "I won't." He knelt as well, aware of something coming up behind him. Something touched him on the arm and he looked down to see a tentacle lying there. He controlled his instinctive flinch.

_If you two are _done_ acting like children…_ Healer said in a snappish voice. _We have a problem._

_We need to get this fixed, Healer. _Elenia said with heat in her mental tone. _It will fester otherwise._

_More Tenno have been seen on Mars. _Healer said with a flip of it's tentacle that was not touching Dust. _Several._

_How long was I out? _Dust managed the neural speak fairly easily. It came… much easier than he had expected.

_It has been two days since you were brought in._ Healer replied. _Your allies search for you?_

_Karl is not one to mess around. _Dust agreed. Then he paused. "Why did the J-3 Golem not attack Karl's people when it attacked and destroyed that Corpus facility?" He asked aloud.

_They were incidental._ Healer replied easily. _It had… other objectives._

_What kind of objectives? _Dust pressed. Neither Elenia nor Healer replied and Dust sighed both audibly and mentally. _Fine, __**keep**__ your secrets._ He snapped.

_The Corpus captured Lars in a sweep with bunch of lesser cousins__._ Elenia said softly and Dust froze. _They tried to brainwash him. I… asked the J-3's help to get him back._

_**You**__ led that attack?_ Dust said, incredulous.

_No._ Healer replied. _Marishia was there, but the J-3 did it all. We… were coordinating with it's swarm. We had intelligence information from inside the facility. It had more combatants in it's swarm. The rest of us stayed away._

_You are the reason one of the Ancients tried to shoot the Tenno sniper. _Dust said with a snarl that made Elenia recoil.

_They are my family._ Elenia said quietly. _More kin than Tenno now._ _They are all I have. All we have. Dust… please… We are repairing your warframe, just… Please…_

_I can't believe this. _ Dust said slowly. _I… I would like to. But I can't. _He moved to brush the tentacle off his arm, but then, he couldn't _move! What?_

_Easy, Dust. _Healer said softly, sadly._ Just relax. It's okay. Just… relax… _Against Dust's will, his body relaxed. _It won't hurt_

_What are you…? no… _Dust said with a snarl as…

* * *

"Dust?" A quiet, but authoritative voice spoke from the blackness. "You back with us?" Pain rang through Dust's entire being, but it was focused on his head.

"Ow, my head…" Dust said as he opened his eyes to see a ring of Tenno around him, all armed, but none pointing weapons his way. "Jasmina!" He exclaimed! "Where is Jasmina?" He wore the bodysuit he had been wearing and was unarmed.

"We were going to ask you that." Karl said calmly.

"Damn it, they got her." Dust said with a sigh. "Where are we?"

"A cave near the area you described on Mars." Karl said with a nod. "A portal activated and you appeared, unconscious. We could not track it."

"We found more than we bargained for." Dust said with a wince. "Did you see the mess outside?"

"We did." Karl's voice was neutral and Dust stiffened.

"What?" Dust asked sourly. "_What_? Do I _smell_?" Instead of answering, Karl moved to the side and Dust saw… "Aw shit…" The infested pod had been cut open and Dust could feel the residual soreness of the tube that had been down his throat. "That lousy, lying _witch_…" He said with feeling.

"Who?" Alicia asked as the Trinity stood nearby, her scanners whirring.

"Elenia. She is not dead." Dust said sadly. "She suckered me in nicely. Jasmina was caught. I went after her, but…" He shook his head. "We didn't have a _clue_ the J-3 was here until we got hit."

"The J-3 was _here?_" Karl asked softly. "That explains the toxic residue everywhere."

"It was…" Dust started to sit up, but lay back when Alicia coughed. "I was… somewhere else. A cave. Somewhere. I don't know what they wanted, but… Elenia was… Ah this is gonna sound crazy." He said with a sigh.

"What?" Karl asked.

"Elenia was _talking_ to the Infested." Everything around him went still at Dust's soft words. "Yeah, I know."

"Tenno Dust…" One of the others said slowly, the Saryn he had met, but not spoken with before. "Did you say _Elenia_? Did she wear a Mag warframe?" Dust stared at the Sayrn and then swallowed and bowed his head. "Please…" She begged.

"Mori?" Karl asked, somewhat dubious.

"It's important." The Saryn said softly. "Please, Tenno Dust. Was it her?" Dust looked at her and then sat up slowly, looking around.

"Are you going to answer?" Karl asked pointedly.

"I like you, Tenno Karl." Dust said quietly, not moving too far as several weapons moved. They didn't –quite- aim at him. "And your clan was very hospitable. But this is my problem. Not yours." He rose slowly and moved carefully to where the Infested pod lay like a cut open jellyfish. "I don't know who I can trust, so right now…"

"You cannot trust anybody." Karl finished his sentence. "And Jasmina?"

"They are _not_ keeping our sister." Dust said flatly. Then he paused as he saw something else. Another pod was lying in a shadow nearby. "You all check that?" He waved at the pod and all the other Tenno spun to aim at it. "Ah… guess not."

"No life signs." Alicia said quickly. "Whatever it is…" She cursed as Dust knelt down beside it. "Dust…" She warned.

"She said they were fixing the damage my warframe had taken." Dust said quietly. "I wonder…" He touched the pod and it split open, showing an Ash warframe, a Braton Mk-1, a Lato and… "What the _hell_" Dust snapped, staring into the pod. All the Tenno reacted, weapons coming up, but…. Nothing.

"What?" Karl demanded, his Hek up and tracking, but nothing shone, nothing moved.

"This isn't mine…" Dust said, slowly reaching out to touch the Prime Glaive that lay beside the still warframe. "This was… Jasmina's? I think. Why would they give me _her_ weapon?" he asked nobody. "This doesn't make any sense at _all!_"

"Let's get you back and checked out." Karl said slowly. "Check that warframe."

"No time." Dust said slowly. "If they brainwash her…" He shook his head. "I won't let them."

"Dust…" Karl warned him. "Don't you dare!"

"Karl. Please." Dust pleaded. "I got her into this. She was there for me. So many times. I need to get her out of this."

"We cannot trust anything that is going on here, Dust." Karl said flatly. "This is all… _Whoa!_" He exclaimed in shock as the cavern suddenly lit up. All of the Tenno froze in place as a slender form in a Tenno bodysuit appeared from the portal.

"Elenia." Dust said, stunned.

"Dust trusts you, Tenno Karl." Elenia said softly, holding her hands up in surrender as the other Tenno raised their weapons. "I can do no less. I surrender. Jasmina will be arriving momentarily. She is still in the pod."

"Caretaker…" The Saryn said softly, her voice awed. Elenia looked at the Saryn and gave a small nod, but did not speak.

"You are… one of the Caretakers of the… Infested?" Karl said with only a momentary hesitation.

"You can call me what I was and am." Elenia said calmly. "A Caretaker of the Unclean. Your warframe and weapons are uncompromised, Dust. I am sorry we knocked you out, but…" She did not move as the portal lit up again and a pod appeared in the middle of it. Alicia exclaimed and moved to it. "Tenno Jasmina is hurt. We could not gain Dust's trust, so… We released him. And her."

"And now?" Karl asked softly.

"That depends on you, Tenno Karl." Elenia said quietly. "Will you gun me down?"

"Not without cause, Tenno Elenia." Karl said softly as he lowered his Hek. "Will you come with us?"

"Do I have a _choice_?" Elenia asked, looking around at the other Tenno. Will in his Excalibur Prime, Aeron in his Loki, Two in her Banshee, and Mori in the Saryn and Olim in his Frost Prime all had weapons trained on the unarmed and unarmored Tenno female.

"There are always choices." Karl said quietly. "Some good. Some bad."

"I have…remained apart for so long." Elenia said quietly. I don't… know if I can handle being around Tenno again… It has been… so long…" Then she blanched as she looked past them. "_No!_"

"Hello my dear. Long time." Another voice sounded and all turned to see another warframe standing in the dim light of the cave opening. The Torid grenade launcher in the Oberon's hands had Dust freezing. All of the other Tenno did likewise.

"It is _so_ good to see you." Redi said in a kindly tone, then the grenade launcher belched.


	16. Chapter 16

**Hostages**

Dust reacted without thinking. Without his warframe, the Torid's payload would kill him in seconds. He dove to the side, his hand grasping the Glaive where it lay in the pod. It felt…right in his hand, as odd as that sounded. It shouldn't have felt right.

"Redi! Stand down!" Karl ordered, his Hek aiming. Why wasn't he firing? Dust wondered. The other Tenno had also taken aim at Redi who shrugged and lowered his Torid. None of them fired either!

"Whatever." Redi said with a smirk in his voice. "But you might want to check on dear, sweet Elenia before you do anything rash." Dust felt his guts clench as he turned to see a… white cloud? The cloud of gas surrounded Elenia who shook her head.

"Killing me changes nothing, you traitorous scum." Elenia said softly, her face serene. Despite that, Dust could see the tension in her muscles, the fear she was suppressing.

"_Kill_ you?" Redi said with a evil laugh. "Oh my dear. I wouldn't _dream_ of killing you. You are _far_ too important. Elenia." He barked. "Come!" Dust went still as Elenia, to her apparent shock, took a step towards Redi!

"_No!_" Elenia screamed. "_No!_" She begged as she took another step despite effort showing on her face. "What have you _done_?" She demanded as Karl's Tenno moved to keep clear firing lines.

"I made sure your base nature understands who is in charge." Redi said calmly. "And… Just so you know…" He said to Karl who had taken careful aim. "The grenade's payload was a binary. Part was the control pheromones. Doesn't do anything to anyone in a warframe or maimed as Dust is. The rest was a specialized helix toxin. A DNA recombinator." Alicia hissed, her Boltor aimed as carefully as Karl's Hek. "Kill me and she dies, slowly and in great pain. I have the only antidote." The Oberon said with relish.

"And you think we cannot stop you." The Frost Prime said slowly, the Saryn at his side not moving at all. He raised a hand, but the Oberon raised his and blue fire erupted from it to slam into golden code. "We can and we will." The male Tenno said quietly, but with deadly force. "You are not taking her."

"On the contrary. You have bigger problems." Redi gloated. "Elenia, stand between us." The female Tenno was staggering, trying to fight as she walked to where she blocked the other's line of fire. The Frost's hand fell to his side, unwilling to hurt her to save her. "The Corpus have decided that they _want_ this rock. A full invasion force is about to land. You have… about five minutes. Decide Karl. My life or Elenia's." He backed away slowly, the launcher slung and a Furis pistol held to Elenia's skull. "Come my dear, your future awaits."

"You are dead." Dust said softly into the silence that fell. "You, Redi, former Tenno and now _monster_… are _**dead**_."

"_I am still Tenno!_" Redi shouted. "_You_ lost your way, Dust! You and all of the others! You cannot coexist with Infested! You know this! You and all of them deluded yourselves!"

"Did I?" Dust asked softly, his tone dangerous. "_I_ am not the one who killed Song and Pikol." Redi shook his head. Karl and the others… didn't move.

"Neither did I. The Infested did that and they will pay for it." Redi said as the other Tenno stepped forward to follow him. Or… Why were none of them firing? Two at least had a shot that Dust could see. So… What? "Elenia, dear… Hold this." He pulled a grenade from his belt and held it out to her. She took it in trembling hands as he released the safety lever.

Dust rose from where he had been crouched, the Glaive held easily in his hand. It felt… right. It wasn't his. He knew that. It wasn't… quite right. But…

"Don't even think about it, Dust." Redi said quietly. "You are not the First. You can't hit me without hitting her." He pulled Elenia's limp form close.

"Maybe not." Dust said softly as he gauged angles, wind, all kinds of things. "But I know how she feels about you."

"_Kill me, Dust!_" Elenia screamed. "Don't let him…" She broke off as Redi slammed the barrel of his pistol into her skull.

"Be silent you, little brat!" Redi said sharply. "You have done enough!" Elenia shook, but her mouth shut, obedient to his commands. "You are a lock, no more. Locks do not talk!"

"And what have _you_ done?" Dust asked softly. "_You_ took my memories. _You_ hurt us, all of us. We had a _duty_ and you _threw_ it away."

"We were supposed to _cure_ the Infested!" Redi snapped. "Not make _nice_ with them! Don't…" He warned the other Tenno as they _finally_ moved to flank him. Dust's eyes narrowed. What were they _doing_? "I am leaving. She is coming with me."

"You are not taking her, traitor." Dust said softly, the Glaive…humming in his hand. As if it was eager to fly.

"I beg to differ." Redi grabbed Elenia and swung her away and his arm came up and… Dust was jerked back as blue fire suddenly carpeted the ground at the cave entrance, Karl and his people stuck on one side as Redi hauled Elenia into his arms and ran.

"We need you alive." Mori hissed in his ear as he pulled back his arm to send the Glaive flying, then paused as she grabbed his other arm. "_Both_ of you!"

"Let go!" Dust yelled and pulled loose, hurling the Glaive, but… It was too late. Redi was gone and the blue carpet of energy still blocked the entrance. "_Run while you can you __**son of a bitch**__!"_ Dust screamed. _"And look over your shoulder! I am coming for you!"_

"Alicia." Karl commanded and the Trinity moved to scan the pod containing Jasmina. "Dust." His voice held command but…

What the hell was going on? Why hadn't any of the others shot Redi. They could have. Dust knew that.

Dust spun, his hand coming up to catch the Glaive automatically. It felt… right as he sheathed it on… his bare forearm. That was wrong. His arm was bare, no attachment point for the Glaive. This wasn't possible. But it felt right. Dust moved to kneel by the pod that held his gear and slowly reached for the warframe.

"Dust…" Karl warned him. "Don't do anything rash."

"_Rash_?" Dust said in a deceptively mild voice. "_Rash_ was grabbing that girl, taking her from her home and family. _Rash_ was trusting that Redi would be _stopped_. You should have shot him when he first appeared. Rash is… _Whoa_…" He was in motion as the portal activated again and a huge form was suddenly present. "No!" He screamed as all the Tenno drew beads on Healer. He placed his unarmored form between Healer and the Tenno. "Healer, what are you _doing_?" He demanded. A feather light touch on his shoulder and…

_Speak for me?_ The Infested begged. _Please?_

"She wants me to speak for her." Dust said slowly. None of the Tenno moved. "Either shoot or move." Dust said with a snarl as he started back for his warframe, the tentacle keeping contact.

"Speak." Karl said, not moving.

_The one known as Redi is evil._ Healer said into Dust's mind. He repeated the words aloud. _We do not know what he wants with 'Mind of Light', but it cannot be good. _Dust translated.

"Mind of Light?" Alicia asked, not moving at all.

"Elenia." Dust said slowly. "Right, Healer?" Healer sent an affirmative and clarification. Dust sighed. "Yeah, that is what they call her formally." Then he paused. "Wait. What do you call _me?_"

_Do you really want to know?_ Healer asked, half whimsical, half sad. Dust shrugged and she replied. _Sword of Silence_.

"You call me _Sword_ of _**Silence**__?_" Dust demanded, incredulous. "You _cannot_ be _serious_." Someone snickered.

_Your names were given when we first met you. _Healer said quietly. _Do not fight, Champion Dust. If you fight here, the evil one wins._

"I don't want a fight with Karl's people, Healer." Dust replied aloud, ignoring the tense Tenno surrounding him now. None were going to fire at the moment it seemed. "But I will _not_ leave Elenia in that scum's hands. I do not know what he intends but it cannot be good."

"Can you speak to others as you speak to him?" Karl asked quietly, still not moving.

_Not without physical contact. Our… waking was…flawed._ Healer said sadly. Dust translated. _We tried to find a way to speak in audible noises like you can, but to no avail. When we do… it requires too much biomass and… it becomes unstable. Feral. _Dust translated, his hands flying over his gear, trained reflexes not requiring he see it.

"J-3 and Phorid?" Karl asked.

_They are right on the edge._ Healer said sadly. _Dust…_ She begged.

"Don't try to stop me, Healer." Dust said with a snarl. "I have lost too much. I refuse to lose Elenia again."

"We need you." Mori said softly, her tone… entreating? The others, Two and Olim, Aeron and Will, stood frozen, their weapons ready, but not –quite- aimed.

"Sister Mori." Dust said sadly. "I have lost too much. I am… nothing but dust of ashes of memory." A gasp went around the room and a horrified denial came from Healer, but he continued. "Healer? In her memories, you said Lisa was a key?"

_I did._ Healer said quietly. _We believe what was done to her was… an instigation or a primer of some kind. But for what? We do not know. _He spoke her words aloud and Alicia hissed.

"She was…" Alicia shook her head, her rifle lowering. "Something about what was done to her seemed like she was intended to be part of something. But what?" But her question sounded… odd. Forced. Stilted.

"Nothing good." Karl said with a snarl. "I just received word from Iriana. A delegation of Elders and doctors is demanding the girl."

"They can kiss my _butt_." Dust said with a snarl. "How did Redi get out of lockup anyway? And… _why didn't you shoot?_" His tone said he expected the worst. He had been betrayed again.

"Dust." Karl said slowly. "They say Redi claims to be able to control the Infested." His aim did not waver from Healer who did not move.

"And you believe him." Dust said flatly.

"Well…" Karl said with a sigh. "What he just did to Elenia…"

_She is not of us!_ Healer snapped and Dust translated. The tension skyrocketed as she went still and Dust rose to shield her again. _She is pure Tenno. We have never altered her! A basic scan will show that! _Dust translated that too.

"Alicia?" Karl asked.

"I don't know what I would be looking for." Alicia said softly. "If he can… control…"

_He cannot._ Healer said with a snarl that made all the Tenno raise their weapons even as Dust translated. _Controlling __**one**__ unwilling host is difficult. Controlling millions? Billions? He cannot. There is simply no feasible way. Even Lephantis cannot control all of the biomass in the system. Hurt us? Certainly. Destroy us? Possibly. Control us? No. He will kill 'Mind of Light' for no gain._ Dust shook his head as Healer finished, the sadness in her tone was palpable.

_Can you flee?_ He asked her silently. _They have betrayed me. Again Redi has made his work felt__._

_I am not leaving you!_ Healer said fiercely.

_You can't help me if you are _dead_, Healer._ Dust snapped in his mind. "Karl… Don't…"

"Stand away, Dust." Karl said, his shotgun coming into firing position. But then everything stopped as the Glaive Prime flew from Dust's hand. All of the Tenno flinched back from the whirling blades as Dust and Healer fell back, the portal yawning golden. "Dust!" Karl shouted.

"We will take care of Jasmina." Dust said calmly as the portal activated around him, Healer and the pod containing Jasmina that hadn't moved from where it had landed. All three were suddenly washed in golden energy. Karl moved to fire, but then the Saryn interposed herself. "Thank you, Mori." Dust said softly. "Unlike _some_… I will not betray our kind." It was a promise.

"I know." The Saryn said sadly as she saluted him. The Glaive flew back to his hand and the portal took them.

_Why?_ Healer asked, stunned as Dust knelt down beside the pod containing Jasmina. _Why side with us…? You… You do not remember us. We have seen your… You do not believe us… _ Her confusion was clear.

"You have been in my mind." Dust said quietly. "What do I feel about Redi?" He asked with a snort and Healer froze. "That's right. Regardless of my feelings about you, Elenia, or Jasmina… I wouldn't leave _anyone_ in his hands. I _will_ kill him this time."

_I…_ Healer seemed at a loss for words, then straightened. _Orders, Champion?_

"We need to find out where he took Elenia." Dust said slowly. "Is Jasmina… stable?" He asked a number of armed humans entered the small room, aiming at him, he didn't even look at them.

"She will wake in a bit." The nurse from before said as he pushed his way to the fore. "What happened?" He asked as he knelt by Jasmina's pod

"_Redi_ happened." Dust said with a snarl. "Can you track Elenia?" He asked. The nurse looked at him and Dust snarled. "Can you _track_ her?"

_We can._ Healer said slowly. _Why?_

"Because it is past time I _ended_ this." Dust said, sheathing the Glaive to turn and face the humans who still stared at him. "I don't remember you, any of you. But no matter what… No matter who did what, when or why, if I am any judge of Redi's _lack_ of character, Elenia and Lisa are now in _grave_ danger."

"You _took_ them from us!" The burly form of Lars pushed his way to the fore. One arm hung in a cast, but his face was suffused with red. "Don't deny it!"

"I don't." Dust said softly and the man froze, his bluster suddenly irrelevant. "I hurt your daughter. I got Elenia trapped. I am going to make it right. With your help or without it. If I have to walk over your bleeding body to do it, I will." There was no threat in the Tenno's words, just promise.

_What will you do? _Healer asked. From their expressions, everyone but Dust could hear her even without her touching them as she was touching Dust.

"First I need to wake up Jasmina." Dust said quietly. "Better if I am alone for that. Then I need access to a Tenno com system."

"For?" Lars asked suspiciously.

"If we can track where Elenia goes, I can get there quickly and quietly." Dust said softly. "_If_ I can get my ship."

"And if you can't?" One of the others said, swallowing hard.

"Then I board and steal a Corpus or Grineer ship or…" He paused as Healer made an odd noise. "Yes?" He asked her.

_You would fight your kind for us?_ The Ancient asked slowly. Dust shook his head and the Healer's mental tone hardened. _What then?_

"I would rather not, but… Long ago, I swore Redi's death." Dust said quietly. "I think it is time I fulfilled that vow."

"She is awake!" The nurse said, backing away from the pod where the form within was writhing.

"Out." Dust commanded as he moved to kneel beside it. He looked up as Lars drew a long knife, but the human flipped it and handed it to him handle first. "I have it covered." Dust said as he held up the Glaive. "But thanks."

The others filed out quickly and Dust cut the pod open without fanfare, the Glaive's razor sharp blades cut through the tough material like it was made of old fashioned wood pulp paper. He was as gentle as he could be when pulling the tube from Jasmina's mouth and she barely gagged as it came out.

"What are you _doing_?" Jasmina demanded, staring at the Glaive in Dust's hand.

"Going rogue." Dust said sadly. "Redi screwed me _again_. Karl's people were working with him and he took Elenia." Jasmina stared at him and Dust sighed, then laid the Glaive by her hand. "Do what you have to do."

"Why?" Jasmina asked, not moving.

"Elenia and her…friends… sent us back to Mars where Karl and his people found us. Elenia surrendered to Karl. Then Redi appeared and took her. Took control of her body and fled with her. Karl and his people could have stopped him, instead, they stopped _me_. They are working with him." Dust said softly. Jasmina inhaled and Dust nodded. "Whatever Redi is planning cannot be good."

"Why are we…_here?_" Jasmina sked slowly, staring around the small room. "This is a portal nexus."

"This is how Elenia and her people have hidden for so long." Dust said quietly, sitting back to give Jasmina space. She wasn't wearing anything but it didn't seem to bother her. "I will get you some clothes."

"Dust…" Jasmina said slowly. "I…"

"Don't say it, Jasmina." Dust said with a shake of his head. "I need to be focused right now. I need…" He bowed his head. "Redi took Elenia and said she was the key to whatever he was doing. She and Lisa too I bet."

"Wait…" Jasmina said, her head obviously spinning. "Redi was in lockup. How did he get out?"

"Karl said he told the Elders he had a way to 'control' Infested." Dust said as he turned to where his warframe lay in its opened pod. "Healer says it's a lie. Not possible."

"And you believe the Infested." Jasmina said, her tone dubious as she sat up and winced a bit. She ignored the Glaive by her hand, staring at Dust.

"What I _believe_ is immaterial, Tenno Jasmina." Dust said quietly as he turned the warframe over and opened the back seals. "Redi took Elenia. He controlled her body somehow and took her." Jasmina went still and Dust nodded. "I wouldn't leave a rabid _Sand Skate_ in his hands, let alone a sister. Even if she is renegade…"

"She isn't." Jasmina said with a shake of her head. Dust turned to look at her and she sighed. "Her oaths… predate the war, Dust. I… I wanted to tell you…"

"But you didn't know how I would react." Dust said mildly. "Noted. _I_ don't know how I would have reacted either. I don't…remember any of this." He waved his hands around the area.

"So…" Jasmina said slowly. "Do we fight?"

"No." Dust said as he started sealing his warframe.

"Then what?" Jasmina asked. "Two of us against all of Karl's people and who knows who else?"

"Tricks of m' trade, Jasmina m' girl." Dust said in an odd accent with a grin as he lifted his helmet up. "Tricks of m' trade."

"I hate it when you say things like that." Jasmina said and then paused. "Wait… they said my warframe was trashed… I… fought…" She shuddered a bit.

"I have one you can use." Dust said then blinked as his HUD came alive and his helmet sealed. "I just need to get my ship and you can bond to it. I have all the parts, but never assembled it."

"Oh?" A wealth of information was in that single word from the female Tenno.

"I can't wear an Ember Prime." Dust's dry tone had Jasmina stiffening.

"Okay." Jasmina said softly. "And… Supposing we _can_ find Redi… What then? He will have an army with him."

"Smoke and mirrors, m' girl." Dust said in the same funny voice. "Smoke and mirrors."

"I _hate_ you." But she was grinning.


	17. Chapter 17

**Smoke and Mirrors**

Dust waited in silence while Jasmina finished her checks. This time, both of them carried quiet weaponry selected from Dust's ship. Jasmina carried a Paris bow and Dust his suppressed MK-1 Braton. They stood in an air duct that had served as their ingress to the derelict Orokin ship that Elenia's signal was coming from. It felt…familiar to Dust.

"This is where it began, isn't it?" Dust said quietly as he touched a wall nearby. Jasmina nodded. "I don't remember… but it feels familiar. Are you sure?" He didn't want to fight Tenno but it might come to that.

"Letting the Infested loose stands as one of the worst orders I have ever obeyed." Jasmine said soberly. "I may have forgotten a lot in cryo, but you… I remember you. Redi has to be stopped." She ran her hand over her head and sighed. "This feels…wrong." The flame on her crest did not damage her armored hand.

"Hey." Dust said with a grin. "I always knew you were hot stuff. Now the entire _universe_ will know." Jasmina smacked him, but was careful not to make any noise.

"I am surprised you didn't put a whoopee cushion in here." Jasmina said sourly.

"Would I do that?" Dust asked with an air of hurt innocence.

"Yes." Jasmine said with a mock snarl. Both of them froze as the sound of firing came to their ears. "Are you… sure?" Jasmina asked soberly.

"No." Dust said softly. "I can't be sure of anything right now. But they do seem intent on helping Elenia."

It had been…nerve wracking. Healer had called for help and Infested had poured in from all over. Dozens, hundreds of them. Both Tenno had been worried, but none of the Infested had so much as stepped out of line as they filed into the portal that had led them –and the two Tenno- to the bowels of this forgotten relic of an ancient Empire. Not just lesser Infested either. Both Phorid and J-3 had shown up. Which was good. Preliminary stealthy reconnaissance had shown that at least a dozen Tenno were present in the ship. Karl's clan were present in force, noticeably absent were Mori and the Frost Prime Olim.

Dust's plan was simple, but at the same time, difficult. Any Tenno individually outmatched dozens of lesser cousins. Phorid and J-3 were the vanguard, both sent to draw some of the Tenno away from where Elenia's signal was coming from. Healer had not been able to determine the female Tenno's status, so Dust had gone for quantity and speed. It wouldn't be…

_Tenno Dust._ Dust froze as the Lotus' voice sounded in his head. From her stance, Jasmina heard the same thing. _Stand down._

_Redi's life is mine, Lotus. _Dust replied evenly. _Now kindly __**butt out**__._Jamsina snorted a laugh and he looked at her.

"I heard that…" Jasmina said with a snort. "You did _not_ just tell _the Lotus_… to _butt out_…?" She was chuckling.

"I have wanted to do that since I first heard her change my mission in the middle of it." Dust said with a shrug. "Of course she knows we are here. And by now, so does Karl."

"Then we better move." Jasmina said sadly. "And Dust?" He looked at her. "Stay alive. I want to talk to you when this is done."

"Right back at'cha hot stuff. Aim to disable. No dead kin." Dust said with a sigh as he ran lightly to the edge of a sheer drop and without a backward glance, threw himself off.

The plan was fluid in number of ways. The major problem that Dust had, was that he did not really want to kill any Tenno but Redi. The Infested didn't care. Everything was biomass to them. He hadn't wanted to send Infested after small patrols of two or three Tenno, but he didn't really have a choice. Unless his kin were totally inept, they were not likely to be killed, but the possibility did exist. As he was falling, though… the lights around him flickered.

_Dust. You cannot run from your past._

_Oh, of all the…_ Dust said sharply. _Not __**now**__, you __**stupid**__…_

_The blood of Sargas Ruk is on your hands. _Stalker taunted him again. Some people thought he was an AI of some kind. He acted as regular as clockwork on occasion. _Did you really think there would be no repercussions?_

_It's been six __**months**__, moron! _Dust snapped in his head, fully aware that the other renegade could not hear him. _And he is a __**clone**__, he doesn't __**stay**__ dead! _

Dust landed at the bottom of the passage and rolled. Then he ran. All around him, infested poured from vents into passageways, hundreds of them. Thousands of them. All moving in multiple directions to confuse the issue.

_Your sentence is- _

Suddenly Stalker materialized nearby and Dust actually paused for a moment to flip the boogeyman a jaunty salute as the red and black warframe was literally _buried_ under a swarm of Infested before he could even _move_. There was not even time for Stalker to scream, let alone taunt again, before he was torn to pieces.

"Have a nice _day_, kinslayer." Dust said as he ran on. But inside, he was chortling. _Talk about your tactical __**blunders**__… Teleport blind into a ship filled with Infested… Might want to pick targets a little better next time, idiot._

His jovial mood evaporated as he heard firing. He slowed his pace towards where Elenia's signal was originating and peered around a corner. Ahead, two Tenno were holding a bridge against a tide of Infested. They had picked their position with care. It was a good choke point, the sheer weight of fire from the Tenno holding back the waves of Infested. A Trinity and Excalibur Prime. Alicia and Will. Dust held up a hand as another wave of Infested came up behind him and they stopped. Dust stepped out into view as the last Infested on the bridge fell to a precise Skana strike from Will, who froze in seeing him.

"Hi guys." Dust said with a nod. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Dust!" Alicia snapped, her rifle coming up. "Surrender!"

"No. What has he done to Elenia, Alicia?" Dust asked, striding forward as if he hadn't a care in the world. Will… backed up a pace and tapped Alicia's arm. She stared at her companion and did the same. They stood on a small island between two pieces of bridge. Dust nodded to them. "Smart move."

"You choose your battleground or it chooses you." Will quoted the Tenno Code quietly. "You cannot win, Dust."

"It's not about winning, Will." Dust said as his Glaive came to hand. "You know that. Redi is _dead._"

"We are ordered to stop you." Will said softly. His Braton rifle was aimed. Alicia's Boltor was also aimed. Dust ignored both of them. "Stand down."

"No." Dust repeated, then hurled the Glaive while sliding into cover. A torrent of bullets and bolts tore up the metal around the low wall that edged the chasm as Dust slid along it. But then… The Glaive arced under Dust's commands and hit a specific panel on a far wall.

Clang. The bridge that the two Tenno had been standing on suddenly folded up on itself. The island that they were on was suddenly fronted on two sides by sheer metal walls that had been bridge planes just a moment before. If the Tenno had been standing on it, they would have been tossed off into the chasm. Dust caught the Glaive and continued on, his path clear, even if he didn't –quite- remember it.

"How did you _do_ that?" Alicia demanded. She had no shot from where she stood, the bridge metal was too thick to punch through even with a Boltor. "That throw was nowhere _near_ the bridge controls." Dust ignored her and continued on.

Healer had promised that no matter how many infested fell today that the biomass would be recovered. That all would be reformed. He didn't really care. As he had said, all he was now was vengeance against Redi. Nothing else.

A scream sounded and Dust hurried his steps. He paused and then teleported to place himself over a fallen sister as Phorid was about to savage her. He looked the Infested monstrosity in the eye and did not move. Phorid made an unintelligible noise and moved away, leaving Dust to extend a hand over his fallen sister. Green mist fell from his hand to salve her injuries. She stared up at him, dumbfounded. It was a Mag. Karen, from Karl's dojo.

"You shouldn't be alone here, sister." Dust said as her warframe repaired itself. "Find your kin. Now."

"Why?" Karen asked.

"Why what?" Dust asked as he turned away. He heard her pistol click off safe, but he did not turn.

"_Why_ have you betrayed us?" Karen asked, hurt in her tone. "Why help me?" She was nearly in tears. "I… I _admired_ you!" She said with a half scream.

"Karen…" Dust said sadly, still not turning. "My name is Dust. I _am_ Dust. Dust of memory. Dust of the past." He shook his head. "Shoot if you must, but you will _not_ stop my vengeance. That is _all_ I have. _All_ I am." He bowed his head. He looked over his shoulder and she was still on the ground. "Redi is the _only_ one I will kill, but I _will_ kill him. Unless one of your kin kills me first. You?"

"I don't understand…" Karen said, shaking. "This isn't… This isn't right… Infested don't… I… You…"

"Find your kin, sister." Dust said quietly. "Stay safe. This isn't over." A smoke bomb and he was gone.

Dust made his way across catwalks, past battles where Tenno fought Infested and through air ducts, avoiding the battles when he could. He saw a titanic battle in the distance between J-3 and what looked like Karl. J-3 was doing as it had promised. Keeping the enemy occupied. He saw Jasmina once, her hands helping a black carapace Banshee warframe with an arrow through it's arm. He…

He dodged to the side as something warned him and a bullet clipped the ground where he had been. He couldn't see the shooter, so he tossed another smoke bomb and ran. But then, the entire corridor ahead of him suddenly seemed to explode as a hose of bullets tracked him even in his Invisibility. He rolled to a cross corridor and poked his head out. Then he jerked it back as fire tore up the area where it had been. The sheer weight of fire was incredible. He teleported to the other side just in time as a terrific explosion tore through the area where he had been hiding. There was no one there, it was… some kind of automated weapon. A familiar one. The 'chain gun' that he had admired in Karl's dojo.

Dust centered himself carefully and threw the Glaive again. He could…feel it flying through the air. He could see it as it spun, seeming in slow motion. The chain gun tried to target the Glaive, but tracked too slow and Dust made the Glaive cut low to the floor. A set of cables appeared as he passed the turret and he arced the Glaive into them. Through them. Suddenly the machine died, whirring and clanking as the Glaive flew back to his waiting hand. He stepped out into the corridor, but the machine was still, sparking and whirring. He spun, Glaive up to block as a voice sounded.

"If I hadn't _seen_ it…" Aeron's shaken voice preceded the Loki appearing nearby. "I _never_ would have believed it. How?" He asked. He sounded…awed. "No one since the _First_ can guide a Glaive in _flight_… How?" He repeated, nearly begging.

"I don't know." Dust replied honestly. "Do we fight now?" He asked sadly.

"No." Aeron said, laying his Snipetron rifle on the deck. "Karen… She told me what you did." He shook his head. "I am ordered to stop you, but… I can't fight you. I…" He shook his head.

"Get Karen and stay safe." Dust said quietly. "I have some control over the Infested, but it is minimal at any distance. I give you my word. I won't kill any but Redi if I have any choice, brother."

"Karl is waiting for you." Aeron said sadly. "I… Karen told us what happened. But Karl…" He shook his head. "Our orders are clear."

"It won't work." Dust said softly. "Whatever Redi is doing won't work. But it doesn't matter. His life is _mine_."

"I am not going to stand in your way." Aeron said, bowing formally to Dust. "I wish…" He shook his head.

"Me too." Dust said quietly as he started off past the ruined chain gun turret. Ahead, he saw an open area. In it, a battered white Rhino stood, Orthos Prime in hand. Dust sighed deeply and strode forward. He was not surprised to hear a hatch slam shut behind him. He hit his smoke screen, but then reappeared. "Ah, what is the point?" He said with a shrug.

"Well played Dust." Karl said calmly. "This was one _hell_ of a diversion. J-3 _and_ Phorid. Jasmina shutting hatches to keep any reinforcements away. And _how_ many Infested?" He asked curiously.

"_Lots_. They came for Elenia." Dust said as he continued towards Karl who strode slowly to meet him. "I asked them not to kill. They will reform quickly."

"I had wondered." Karl said with a nod. "J-3 was usually a _lot_ harder to beat. It wasn't _trying_ to kill me." Dust shook his head. "I can't let you do this, Dust. No matter what else, I have my orders."

"I know." Dust said softly. "But my oath stands. Redi is _dead_." He said flatly.

"If he can stop the Infested, Dust…" Karl said softly. "It is worth it."

"He _can't_." Dust said with a snarl. "That scum lies as easily as he breathes. Whatever lies he spun won't come to fruition. What has he done to Elenia and Lisa?"

"I don't know." Karl admitted. "My orders are to secure the area and keep you away from him."

"Good luck with that." Dust said simply, his Glaive coming to hand. Karl…did not attack. Instead, the Rhino held his Orthos Prime in a blocking posture. "Not a winning strategy." Dust commented, walking around Karl as the Rhino turned in place to keep the Orthos between himself and the Glaive. He seemed… almost transparent, but then he was fully there.

"Considering what you did at the bridge and to the gun…" Karl said easily. "A cautious stance is likely best."

"True." Dust agreed, then he shook his head. "My quarrel is not with you. My quarrel is not with the docs. My quarrel is not even with the idiots who let the Infested loose so long ago. My _only_ quarrel is with Redi. Every moment you delay me, he hurts Elenia and Lisa more."

"He has promised that neither will be harmed." Karl said slowly, not taking his eyes off the Ash.

"And of _course_, you believed him." Dust said with a sigh. "_Right_… You are not that stupid."

"No." Karl disagreed. "He has proven himself a liar. But that does not change the fact that I have to stop you."

"You can't." Dust said quietly. Karl looked at him and Dust sighed. "I don't remember this place. But I can read a map. And I do…feel parts of it." Karl stiffened and Dust chuckled nastily. "Tell me something, Karl. How long will this place survive when Jasmina breaks the reactor containment?"

"You wouldn't…" Karl had frozen in place. "You would kill us _all_!"

"You have a chance to escape." Dust said with a shrug. "The Infested have a chance to escape. I get to Redi. Win-win-win."

"That presumes that Jasmina made it to the reactor facility." Another voice said from nearby and Dust stiffened as the black Banshee from before carried a still form into view. The Ember Prime was battered, but her life signs flickered on his HUD.

"I'm sorry, Dust." Jasmina said, abject. "I… couldn't do it… I couldn't kill her."

"It's okay, Jasmina." Dust said with a nod. "I didn't think you could. Which is a good thing." Everything stopped at his calm words.

"What?" Jasmina asked and then bit back a scream as Two laid her down. "Backstabbing little…"

"Our kin are too rare for us to be killing each other off. I may not remember, but I did live here. Tricks of m' trade." Dust said with a shrug. "Smoke and mirrors. All is illusion. What is real and what is _not_?" Jasmine stared at him and then started laughing wildly. Two drew her bow and Dust didn't move as she fired an arrow that… _passed right through his arm to sink into a wall nearby_. A hologram! The holographic Dust shook his head. "Now you see me…" The hologram vanished.

"How the…? What the _hell_?" Karl demanded staring around. "Two! Sonar!"

Two hit her power and… Both spun to see a door open behind them. Dust stood in the door. He flipped them the same salute that he had flipped Stalker. Two drew her bow again, but the arrow went flying as Jasmina kicked out, her warframe coming back online. The Ember Prime spun to her feet and charged Karl, her Ether Sword in hand.

"And…now you don't." Dust said as he slammed the door just before another arrow hit it. He spun the locking mechanism, then scrambled the control codes. "Oh _Re__-_**di**… One, two… Dusty's comin' for you…" he caroled off key as he strode into the heart of the facility. But what met his eyes had him freezing.

"You will not stop my vindication." Redi said from an enclosed transparent booth on one wall. Dust ignored him.

The Ash's eyes were on the two females who sat strapped back to back in chairs in the middle of the room. Elenia and Lisa were awake, but their eyes stared straight ahead into nothingness. Both had machinery attached to their skulls. And… into their skulls. Both wore rigid collars that had tubes coming out of them and Dust needed no imagination to know that they had other tubes in worse places. Their mouths were held open and filled with odd machinery. Both had been crying for some time, their eyes held open by more machinery.

"You sick son of a bitch." Dust said far more calmly than he felt as he looked from the women to Redi, then back.

"Now, now, don't be like that. Come see my triumph, Dust." Redi said with a sneer that was visible even through his closed visor. "Meet my gift to you and your filthy playmates!" The Oberon said with a nod.

"Even for you this is low, Redi." Dust said, throwing his Glaive at the booth. It glanced off without making a scratch. if it blocked a _Glaive_, none of his bullets would likely pierce. But then he saw something that made his heart leap, at the top of the booth...

"Meet the Siren." Redi said with glee. "Meet her and die!" Sound came. Eerie singing. Compulsive singing. The singing pulled at something within Dust and he could… feel every infested in the area suddenly turn to where the call was coming from. Through Elenia to their massed minds. But not just the Infested. If it was pulling Dust… Then Tenno too would be called…

_Oh… dear… _


	18. Chapter 18

**Siren**

"And now… Siren." Redi said with glee. "Kill." Dust went still as a sound went out from the women. An odd sound. It didn't push him. But he…felt it. A vibration. A subtle, but powerful vibration. If it hit the right pitch… sound could shatter glass, bone, steel, walls… and deeper. Far, far deeper into the basic structure of organic matter. To DNA.

"No…" Dust breathed. "Redi, _No!_" Dust screamed as the sound picked up volume. "_Don't_!"

"You can't stop it!" The Oberon cackled. "No one can. They will come, they will hear and they will die! And there is _nothing_ you can do to stop it!"

"It's not just pulling Infested!" Dust pleaded with the insane Oberon. "It's pulling _Tenno_! Can't you feel it?"

"You _lie_!" Redi snapped, pushing controls. "It is what you _do_. You _ignore_ your duty. You lie. Just like always."

"Our _duty_ was to _protect_." Dust said with a snarl. "_Protect_ Orokin from Infested and protect the _Infested_ until we could find a cure. But the Union project…"

"Don't talk to me about that sanctimonious crap!" Redi screamed. "You forgot our path!"

"And you _didn't_?" Dust asked, his voice loud to be heard over the Siren's call. It… wasn't pulling at him now for some reason. "What you did to Helga, Lars, and all the others _wasn't_ a gross violation of your _own_ duty? Really? _Enslaving_ humans? We were supposed to _protect_ them!" That had been his own calling, he realized, he was always working to protect. "Protect _everyone_ from the Technocyte virus! That was our _job_!"

"It…" Redi slumped a bit in his glass enclosure. "It was needed. It was wrong, but it was needed. You were all blinded by the enemy."

"_They were not enemies!_" Dust nearly exploded. "Not _all_ of them! They were sick! If we had managed to talk to them and keep the dialogue open, none of this would have happened. But _no_… You had to go do your own thing. Go play _God_ with slave humans. Thank _the ancestors_ I don't remember. You make me _sick_ enough with what I _do_ remember, you piece of trash!"

"_They are the enemy!_" Redi screamed right back. "I found a cure. I will end the threat!"! He said, pushing controls.

"No, you _won't_." Dust said with a snarl and threw the Glaive. Not at the enclosure, but at a vent cover nearby. The super sharp metal disk tore through the thin vent cover like, well…a saw. Then it traveled up and… around. Through the ducts!

"What are you…?" Redi snapped, than he screamed. "No!" The Oberon jerked back as the Glaive flew through the vent at the top of his enclosure, tearing down into the machinery in front of him. He screamed again, an animal sound of pain as the Glaive flew back up to the vent _through_ one of his arms. "You… cannot…"

"Shut up and bleed, you _stupid_ fool." Dust said as he stepped to where the two females were sitting. He couldn't see any way to get them out of the monstrosity they were confined in. He touched Elenia's shaven skull and nearly recoiled at the screaming in her head.

_Nonononononogodpleasenonononosomeonestopmestopusplease…._

_Easy, sister. _Dust said silently and Elenia's mind suddenly went still._ I am here._

_Dust…? _Elenia's mind voice was timid, terrified._ I… I can't… he did something in my head._

_Mine too. _Another voice spoke up and Dust went still.

_Lisa?_ He asked. _Is that you?_

_I… I think… that was my name… The armored man and the woman in white called me 'Brownie' but… I… _The mental voice was hesitant. _I can't stop it!_ She pleaded. _I can't stop this!_

_Dust… _Elenia said sharply. _The tone will build in intensity. It is targeted at Infested DNA. But it won't stop there. Even warframes will not protect from such raw power._

_Of course not._ Dust said, looking at the glass enclosure. _And he doesn't care._

_He sees…a weapon. _Elenia said sadly. _A means of targeted destruction. But it is not. It won't discriminate. Tenno… are evolved from the Technocyte virus, Dust. It will call and kill every Tenno who hears it. _

_It's not affecting me. _Dust said slowly._ Is it?_

_It is. _Lisa's voice was sad. _You are here, so the call isn't. But the sonic pulse… It is building and when it reaches it's peak…_

_I liquefy._ Dust replied. _How long?_

_Minutes. Maybe. _Elenia said sadly._ Stop us, Dust. You can. _Dust recoiled and she screamed at him. _**Dust please!**_

Dust shook his head as he turned back to where Redi was working on the shattered console in the enclosure, the Oberon's arm had healed.

"Just out of curiosity, Redi." Dust said in a conversational tone. "You _do_ remember that all Tenno came from the Technocyte virus, right?"

"You _lie_!" The Oberon screamed, his hands flying over the controls, trying to repair what Dust had broken. "I _will_ end this threat!"

"No." Dust felt an overpowering calm descend on him as he let the Glaive fly to the vent again. "No, you won't."

Redi had time to scream once as the Glaive came out of the vent and…ricocheted inside the enclosure. It was just as hard on the _inside_ as on the _outside_. The transparent material suddenly turned opaque as blood and worse things flew. Machinery mixed with parts of warframe flew everywhere. Part of Dust's mind kept the Glaive bouncing inside the control booth. Cutting the Tenno he hated more than anything else in existence into pieces too small even for a warframe to regenerate. Trying to erase the horror from his past as well as from the booth.

"Dust." A somewhat familiar voice spoke from nearby as a golden from coalesced from nowhere. "Your vengeance is done. You need to stop Siren." The man wore a warframe…that wasn't one. Dust could not –quite- bring the man's name to mind. "Break the machine."

"Break the machine?" Dust said absently as the Glaive continued to bounce. "No. That will kill them."

"It is the only way." The energy form said calmly. "And I think you made your point with Redi. He will… _not_ enjoy his time with us." The man said dryly. "Mag is dulling her spoon."

"That is not my concern." Dust said softly. "My kin are in danger from this… this thing." He turned back, examining the machinery that held both Lisa and Elenia.

"It will take time to build in power and intensity." The energy form said with a nod. "But it _will_ kill Tenno as well as Infested. First the ones in the facility, then, it will spread through the neural linkages, across the mind mass."

"I won't kill them." Dust said quietly, still focusing the Glaive bouncing, tearing the bits of Redi into smaller and smaller parts. "I don't have the right."

"Much as I detest the saying…" The energy form said with a sigh. "The needs of the many _do_ sometimes outweigh the needs of the few."

"Or the _one_." Dust said, his tone absent as he stared at the machine. "Why is Lisa coherent now?"

"Redi put… things back in." The not quite Tenno said with a sigh. "She will be mourned, but…" He trailed off as Dust shook his head. "Dust."

"She is human." Dust said simply. "I don't kill humans. Or kin." He said, nodding to Elenia. "There has to be another way."

"Dust!" The man said, exasperated. "There…" He paused and then he seemed to blanch.

"There is." Dust said mildly. "Isn't there?" It wasn't a question. Not really.

"Dust…" The energy form said slowly. "If you ask _them_…"

"I am not asking _them_." Dust turned to scrutinize the form and nodded. He _did_ know this being. "I am asking _you_, First One. _Is_ there another way."

"There _is_." Hayden Tenno said, his face remote. "It may not work. You won't survive. And… You will not be… recoverable. The energy released will blot out any chance of your becoming energy form. You will be gone for good."

"What do I do?" Dust asked quietly.

"You won't _survive_!" Hayden snapped. "What happened to your instinct for survival?"

"There is _another_ instinct." Dust replied easily. Somehow, they were carrying on a normal conversation as the pitch and volume of sound increased. "A primal instinct. Family. Jasmina slept with me, didn't she?" The energy form did not respond, but Dust continued. "That is how the energy was passed into me to heal. Through pain and fear, through madness and grief… We found each other." He bowed his head. "I do love her, but… What do I _do_?"

The energy form stood rock still for a moment. "Dust…"

"What do I _do_?" Dust demanded quietly as the Glaive stopped its frantic bouncing and slipped back up the vent. It came to his hand and sat there, humming in readiness. "And did you… _what is with_ this?" He indicated the Glaive with his free hand. "How can I control it? How can I sheathe it without a hard point? Did you do this?"

"No." Hayden Tenno said calmly. "Well, I taught you a lot in that cell. Me and the others. The potential is in all who came after me. Even the ones who the Void twisted and the Orokin used to fight the Sentients. Few touch the core of their being however. It takes long study and long practice. Which you had even if you do not remember. Very, very few who touch that true core use a Glaive. If they did, _they_ would also be able to control it in flight. It's part of what Tenno _are_. That is not a Prime Glaive, Dust." Dust froze and stared at it. "It is part of you. Molded to your needs and answering to your will. A separate part, but part."

"What do I do?" Dust asked for the third time, then went still as another energy form appeared beside Hayden. The human woman was crying.

"D…Dust…" She sobbed. "I… I am Mari. I was a roboticist. I…can help…"

"Be at peace, Mari." Dust said gently. "I am. But we don't have a lot of time."

"No. We don't." Mari looked at the other energy form. Hayden sighed and vanished. "This is going to be fast and dirty. I don't _know_ if we can do it without harming the women, but we can try…" Dust just looked at her and she nodded. "First, you need to disconnect the…"

It only seemed like an eternity. In reality it took maybe three or four minutes for Dust to disassemble part of the machinery under Mari's guidance. To expose it's core. To carefully sequester the linkages that connected each woman to the amplifier mechanism that was still feeding sound into the area. Dust felt an ache in his bones, pain the likes of which he had never felt, but he continued even as wetness seeped down his cheeks. Blood from shattered eyes. His neural link with his warframe told the tale. He was dying. The women were protected somehow from the torrent of power. He was not.

_Dust._ The voice came as he carefully pulled wires from Elenia's scalp. _Don't do this…_ She begged. She was crying again, he noticed.

_I died a long time ago, sister._ Dust replied gently. _It is…_ He gasped as pain slammed into him, his warframe working to heal the bones that had suddenly cracked. It would keep up for a time, then be overwhelmed.

"Dust!" Mari pleaded. "One more!"

"On it." Dust said, laying the wires he had pulled from Elenia's skull to the side and moving to Lisa's. But when he touched it, she was screaming inside her mind.

_NO! NOT FOR ME! NOT FOR ME!_ The girl was yelling. _I WON'T BE RESPONSIBLE! NOT FOR ME!_

_You are not, dear Lisa._ Dust said as her cries cut off. _I was patriarch. It is my responsibility and duty to protect my family._

_Dust… I…_ Lisa stammered inside her head. _I… remember. You helped me. You cared for me. I hurt you. Bit you… I…_

_Your parents love and miss you, Lisa. _Dust said gently. _You will see them again._

_But… _Lisa was crying hard as Dust finished disconnecting what he could. _You… No…_ She pleaded.

_No matter what happens, Lisa._ Dust said gently. _It was my honor to know you. My honor to help you, protect you. I apologize for hurting you. For killing Marishia._

_She was… she was so scared she would hurt me. Then she got all growly and mean. I ran and hid. _Lisa said in a small voice. _I asked the woman in my head for help. She said she would send help__._

'_The woman in your head?' _Dust asked slowly. _The Lotus? The __**Lotus**__ sent me to kill Marishia because you asked for __**help **__when Marishia went feral?_

_She never said who she was._ Lisa said, shivering as his hands touched her scalp. _Please… Dust… Champion…_

_Even __**then**__ I was protecting you. _Dust mused. _Good._ He said with a smile as he caressed her skull. _Goodbye Lisa. Have a good life._

_No! _Lisa's shout was cut off as Dust retreated to the middle of the room and looked at Mari. She bowed to him and he nodded. Then she vanished.

Dust found himself singing.

And in the fury of this darkest hour  
We will be your light  
You've asked me for my sacrifice  
And I am Winter born

((Cruxshadows Winterborn watch?v=SVNjx4k8mWk))

On the word 'born', he threw the Glaive that was and was not part of him into the mass of machinery that the heads of both women were still connected to and…

* * *

"What the hell was that?" Two demanded as Aeron worked to cut through the hatch that Dust had barred, locked and scrambled. Then she screamed. She was not alone. Every single Tenno assembled screamed with her. Aeron, Karl, Will, Alicia, and Karen as well as half a dozen other Tenno from other clans who had come at Karl's call all screamed with Two as… something happened. Jasmina did not, but then again, she was unconscious. It had taken four of them to subdue the berserk Ember and in the end, they had hit her with two stunners before she had fallen still. Then all had been pulled… here. None had known why, but all had grouped at the sealed door.

When whatever swept over them had passed, they all looked up to see…horror staring at them. The Tenno did not move as hundreds of Infested slowly filed into the open air plaza to join the dozens staring at the Tenno. It quickly filled. Two huge forms moved in the rear, the smaller Infested making way for Phorid and J-3. But…

"Why are they not attacking?" Karen demanded, her rifle up in scared hands.

"I don't know." Karl replied, and then everything stopped as a massive voice sounded

_There has been… enough death today, Tenno__._ The voice felt…female. Sad and proud. _Leave in peace._

"Who are we hearing?" Karl asked slowly, not moving.

_We are… The Unclean. _The voice said slowly, a sense awesome power, of many, many minds all focused on the puny warframe clad forms. _But today, we are not your enemies. Sword of Silence bought our lives and yours at the cost of his own._

"What? _No!_" This came from Jasmina who was fighting the bonds that held her. "What happened to Dust?" She demanded.

_The evil one's machine targeted the DNA that held infection._ The massive, sad voice replied. _After slaying the evil one, Sword in Silence could have ended the threat easily by killing Mind of Light and the child Lisa. He chose not to._ Jasmina started to cry and the voice spoke gently. _Be at peace, Tenno Jasmina. He will be remembered and suffers no longer._

"_No!_" Jasmina screamed. "I don't _care_! I…" She managed to break the bonds on her feet and struggled to her feet. She staggered towards the Infested, still fighting the bonds on her hands.

"Jasmina…" Karl said, stunned. "Don't."

"Go." The Ember snapped. "Go back to _your_ family!" She fell to her knees before one of the Infested, an Ancient Disruptor. "Please…" She begged the massed mind. "Make it swift?"

"_Jasmina!_" Two screamed.

_No._ the massed minds said with dreadful force. _There has been enough death today. Tenno__.__ Go._

All of the others looked at Karl who nodded. They moved away, their weapons up and ready. Karl paused.

"Jasmina." Karl said quietly.

"Go." She said flatly. She tore her helmet off and tears were falling like rain. "Your devotion to duty in defiance of common _sense_ killed the Tenno I _loved_. Go! I _refuse_ to obey stupid orders ever again! Go back to _your_ honor! _Your_ duty! _Your_ family. Mine is _dead_."

Karl stared at her, then bowed and left in silence. Jasmina did not move as sounds of movement came. She did not look up as Infested left. Some went the ways they had come. Others entered other vents, to try and bypass the still locked door.

A timeless moment later, Jasmina was alone in the plaza where she knelt, still crying. A door creaked open and a voice called to her.

"Jasmina…" A scared young voice sounded. "Is… Is that you?" She looked up to see Brownie's face. The human woman wore a patient gown and had… things sticking out of her body, but her eyes were clear and the tracks of tears were plain. Her mouth was barred open and her voice came from a speaker in it. Jasmina bowed her head, unable to speak. "Oh, Jasmina." Warm arms suddenly enveloped her warframe as the human woman cried with her.

"_**Why**_?" Jasmina cried out, her throat hoarse. "All that time. All that _pain_… I… I _did_ love him. From the moment I _met_ him. I _didn't_… I didn't _realize_." The woman hugged her tighter.

"We begged him to kill us." The woman said through her own tears. "He wouldn't. He… argued with a ghost. I have never seen anything like it before."

"What do I do _now_?" Jasmina asked, slumping. "I can't… go on… alone…"

"You are not alone." The woman she had called Brownie promised her. "Healer? Help?" She begged. Jasmina controlled a flinch as an Infested tentacle touched her.

_You are hurt as sorely as Mind of Light and Lisa are, Tenno Jasmina._ The mental voice of the Infested that Lisa called Healer was sad. _We will aid you. It is… the least we can do for the one that Sword of Silence chose as his mate._

"He… he _what_?" Jasmina stammered. "But… I never got the chance to ask. I… I did that to him… without his consent… I… I was going to tell him. Explain…"

_His emotions and thoughts were clear. He knew what happened and he chose __**you**__._ The Infested said gently. _Ask Mind Of Light, the one you call Elenia__._

"I haven't…got the guts." Jasmina said sadly. "I…"

"Oh sister." Elenia's voice was breaking. "Oh sister…" Two more arms surrounded Jasmina as she sobbed. "We will take care of you. Now, more than ever. Healer?" Her voice held worry now. "From the marks on her warframe, she was hurt."

_The warframe protected both._ The Infested said after a moment. _The blade that hurt her angled __**up**__._ _There is no damage. _Elenia relaxed a bit.

"What?" Jasmina asked. Something in the other's voice... Elenia hugged her tight enough to be felt through the warframe. But…carefully.

"You're pregnant."


	19. Chapter 19

**Dreams of Grief**

"He is calling again." Elenia said quietly from where she sat. Jasmine did not respond and Elenia sighed. "Sister, ignoring Karl will not work. He will keep pressing. He will keep searching. He knows you did not leave the facility on… Dust's ship." Only a minute catch was in her voice. Jasmina did not look up from what she was doing. "Sister, please. At least _talk_ to him."

"I have _nothing_ to say to Karl, Sister Elenia." Jasmina found comfort in formality. She found precious little comfort in anything else. She knelt, her tears finally spent. She was… empty. "He worked with Redi. His orders killed my mate."

"It wasn't his fault, sister." Elenia said with a hint of exasperation. "It was Redi and your mate _closed_ that account."

"That he did." Jasmine said mildly as she buffed the Glaive once more. It was… They hadn't allowed her in the room where Dust had fallen. She hadn't seen his body. She had sworn not to harm any in Elenia's care so they had given her Dust's Glaive on the promise that she would not harm her_self_ either. She…wasn't suicidal. Not really. Just very sad.

It had been… several days. They blurred. Jasmina had halfheartedly tried to resist but both Elenia and Lisa had the give of two solid blocks of granite. They had gotten her out of her warframe, bathed and bedded down before she could even catch her breath. Now, every time she woke, Elenia was there, a solid dependable and totally _immovable_ presence. Lisa was in and out, reattaching to her family but always coming back to see Jasmina. Sometimes with food, sometimes with a song, sometimes, just to sit with the sad elder Tenno. Elenia… never left Jasmina's side.

"You don't need to hover." Jasmina said finally as she finished polishing the Glaive that didn't really need it. "I am not going to break."

"No." Elenia said sadly, her face still bearing the marks of the machinery that Healer had worked overtime to remove. "You are _broken_ and you are changing. Inside and out. I have never been pregnant myself but I saw what Helga went through." She shook her head with a smile that faded as Jasmina looked away. "Jasmina…?"

"You have all been very kind." Jasmina said quietly. "But I bring danger to you."

"No more than we already face, sister." Elenia said with a hint of steel. "I loved him too. Maybe not quite as strongly as you did. But do not deny me that."

"I… don't." Jasmina said, wilting a bit. "I can't. I can't go on like this, Elenia." She shook her head. "I want to forget. You can do that."

"Jasmina…" Elenia said slowly. "Don't do this."

"I want to forget!" Jasmina snapped, not –quite- a scream, but close.

"Are you sure?" Elenia asked, not condemning, not even arguing. Confirming. Jasmina jerked a nod and Elenia sighed. "Come with me." She rose and stepped to pull Jasmina to her feet. The elder Tenno did not really need the help, but she did appreciate it. She was lost in her misery as Elenia guided her from the room through a short corridor into another room. In it, Healer was standing alone. "She wants to forget, Healer."

Healer made a soft noise and touched Jasmina on the arm. _This_ time, the Tenno did not even flinch from the Infested's gentle touch or worried mental focus.

_Come._ Healer said quietly and Jasmina found herself being pushed and pulled gently to the Infested. Suddenly, she was… inside something and Healer stepped back. Jasmina felt familiar feelings slowly seeping up from her calves as she looked out through a translucent brown membrane. She looked down and the blue fluid was coming up the waist of her bodysuit. A pod had formed around her.

_Will this hurt the baby?_ Jasmina asked, against her will as something latched onto her skull and held it tight. Not hard, nothing hurt, but it felt very strange.

_No._ Healer said gently and Jasmina relaxed as the fluid reached her chin. Then, with a convulsive gasp, it entered her mouth and she choked for a moment, but then relaxed. _There we go. Final connections established._

_Wha-? _Jasmina had time to say then she was elsewhere.

"What the _hell_?" Jasmina managed to say as she stared around herself. She was standing in a small room. The room was comfortable. It had rugs on the floor, pictures on the walls, and… Her thoughts slithered to an uncoordinated halt as an odd chair appeared nearby and an old woman appeared sitting in the chair. The woman's face was a mass of wrinkles, her long hair was all gray and her hands were bent with age, but her eyes were alight with compassion and curiosity as she nodded to Jasmina.

"Do not blame Mind of Light or Healer for the deception, Tenno Jasmina." The old woman said gently. "They both love you. We all do. We all wanted to speak to you."

"Who… Who are you?" Jasmina managed to get out as she stared at the woman. No. This was a representation of a woman. Whoever or _what_ever this was, it was no human.

"We took this form to seem unthreatening." The other said gently. "You have been hurt and scared enough, dear Jasmina. Come." She waved the frozen Tenno close. "You said you want to forget. We can make you forget. Mind of Light and Sword in Silence taught me -us- many things."

"You are… the… mind…" Jasmina trailed off, unwilling to give insult.

"The mind mass that Mind of Light and Sword of Silence saved from madness. The mass of biomatter that Elenia has guarded alone since that horrible day when we lost Sword of Silence." The grandmotherly image said kindly. "Yes. All that and more." She held out a hand to Jasmina. "We can help you. If you want it. If you let us."

"You have the power to do whatever you wish to me." Jasmina said, taking a step closer. "Why don't you?"

"Just because we _have_ a power does not mean it is _right_ to use it. With power comes responsibility." The massed minds of Infested said gently. "Come here, my dear." The kindness was too much. Jasmina found herself crying as she stepped forward and knelt, the old woman pulling the Tenno's head into her lap and stroking it as Jasmina cried. "So sad. So hurt. Ah… Child, this is not a step to make lightly. You have to be sure."

"I want to forget." Jasmina said with a gasp. "I want to forget. Raise his child without the pain."

"Jasmina." Now the ancient image took on a sterner cast. "You want a selective memory wipe. You want to forget Dust." At the name, Jasmina started to cry again but nodded. "Very well, when we remove your child from harm, we will do as you ask."

"What?" Jasmian asked, recoiling to a kneeling position. "_What_ did you say?"

"Tenno Jasmina…" The old woman said gently but sternly. "If you forget the father of your child… Who will remember him? And the child _is_ one of the memories of your mate. You want them gone, yes?"

"No!" Jasmina curled her arms protectively around her belly. "I don't…" She paused and then smiled a little though her tears as realization dawned. "I don't want to forget, do I?"

"No." The other said gently. "You want the pain to stop. You want the heartache to ease. You do not want to forget. We can help you. If you let us."

"What… what will happen?" Jasmina asked slowly. "I don't… I don't want to betray my kin."

"We are not asking you to." The mind mass said gently. "Your mind is your own. You are not Unclean, like us."

"That is an _insult_!" Jasmina snapped. "I _won't_ call you that!"

"But it is true." The other said gently. She beckoned Jasmina close and Jasmina sidled until she was back where she had been, her head in the old woman's lap. "Even if Sword in Silence had not asked us to leave your mind your own, we would not tamper. It likely wouldn't work. We tried that with Michelle and failed miserably. You Tenno are too tough for your own good sometimes."

"What will…?" Jasmina managed a small 'eep' noise as the world suddenly expanded, or… her _perception_ of it did. Suddenly, she was floating in a sea of… of feelings. Minds in myriad forms from imagination were all around her. Minds pressed in on all sides of her, but none were harsh. All were projecting such care and compassion that Jasmina found herself crying again.

_We are with you._ The mind mass said as it took her anger, her pain, her fear and sadness and distributed it amongst itself. It wasn't gone. But it was lessened. _And… we have something for you. _Was that _amusement_ in the mind mass' tone?

_What? _Jasmina did not want to break the feeling, the calm serenity that surrounded her.

"Hiya hot stuff." A quiet voice sounded. Jasmina jerked as one of the massed forms stepped forward and it was _Dust_! "Wondered when you would get here." He wore a garment like the humans with Elenia did. Without looking at herself, Jasmina knew she wore one just like it here.

"Dust?" Jasmina asked, stunned. "What? How? I…"

"I had to get you back for the fish." Dust said with a smirk and then he grabbed her as she threw herself at him, crying. "Hey, hey… It's okay, Jasmina." He held her as she cried and muttered his name over and over. "This is real, Jasmina. But I can't go back."

"But…" Jasmina stopped and pulled herself to scrutinize her mate at arm's length. He was…different. Subtly so, but different. "What happened?"

"In an odd, not Tenno way, I was connected to Elenia when I shattered the machine." Dust said gently. "My body was damaged beyond recovery, the energy within it was degraded as well. But…" He tapped her nose when she made a soft sound of despair. "Part of me survived. They are still going over the data that was saved. A Glaive does not have a lot of data storage."

"You… You were in the _Glaive_?" Jasmina asked, confused.

"Part of me was." Dust said with a smile. "Part of me was in Elenia, she snagged bits when I touched her. Lisa did the same."

"They… They _knew_?" jasmine asked, stunned.

"No." Dust said quietly. "No one knew until last night when they put the pieces together and viola!" He stepped back and spun in place. "I appeared out of thin air!" Jasmina giggled a bit and he sobered. "I can't go back, Jasmina."

"Your body…" Jasmina gulped. "They wouldn't let me see it."

"That was a kindness, Jasmina." Dust chided her gently. "It was torn apart by the feedback." Jasmine swallowed and Dust nodded.

"I can't go back either." Jasmina said with a wince. "I told Karl and the others to shove it. I have been refusing contact."

"Jasmina." Dust said quietly. "I do not think it is Karl's fault. It was _Redi's_ and whoever supported him. I settled that debt. I don't think it was Karl. He was in the dark too. Let go of this hate, dear. It is beneath you." He hugged her tight. "There are so many things I want to show you. But we have time. _If_…" He chided her again, pulling her jaw up so she looked into his eyes. "_If_ you do not want to forget me."

"How could I?" Jasmina asked as she hugged her mate back. "You are a magician. You snapped your fingers and made off with my heart. But now… you are all mine!"

* * *

Jasmina woke in the bed she had been given, her face wet with tears. Warm masses lay on either side of her and she smiled as she looked over to see Elenia's worried face. Elenia smiled as Jasmina did. Jasmina looked the other way and Lisa smiled back.

"You both have been… so good to me." Jasmina said, reaching out to hug both at once. "Thank you."

"Least we could do." Elenia said gently, then nodded to Lisa.

"I have chores." Lisa said with a smile as she hugged Jasmina back. "I will be by with a meal later. I want to talk about Zen. I have so much to catch up on." She kissed Jasmina's cheek and bounced off the bed and out the door before Jasmina could think of a response.

"This is going to take some getting used to." Jasmine said with a sigh as she sat back, Elenia let her go. "You didn't know either, did you?"

"Not until after you went in." Elenia said with a scowl that was ruined by a smile. "Lousy lying creep hid from _me_ too."

"I want to do what you do." Jasmine said slowly. "I want to protect the mindmass, not just because what is left of my mate is in there, but because it is the right thing to do."

"It is a terrible burden, Jasmina." Elenia warned. "The majority of Infested are feral. Even J-3 and Phorid go feral on occasion. Lephantis more often, due to it's size. Our mass is tiny in comparison."

"I don't understand." Jasmina said frankly, looking down at herself for a moment. Like in the vision world thing, she wore one of the odd flesh garments. It felt…right. "Wouldn't _more_ biomass equal _more_ brain cells and thus _more_ brain _power_? _Less_ chance of going feral?"

"You would think that." Elenia said sadly. "But it doesn't seem to work that way. The best hypothesis we have come up with –and it is _just_ a hypothesis- is that when the weapons research was done on Infested, Orokin weapons scientists did something that interfered with conscious thought. They _wanted_ feral." Jasmina thought about that for a moment and then shivered. "Yeah, not a happy thought."

"No, not a happy thought at all." Jasmina said softly. "So…" She looked at Elenia and the younger Tenno stared at her. "We have some time alone. Whatever will we do with it?" She asked as she arched herself. "And… how do we get out of these?" She asked as she ran her hands along…part of the garment she wore.

"Sister, I took advantage of you." Elenia said slowly. "I… spoke out of turn and did things out of turn."

"How long have you been alone, Elenia?" Jasmina asked slowly, not moving.

"Too long." The younger Tenno said with a small cry. "But… I can't…" She gave a squeak as Jasmina reached out and tickled her chin. "Hey!" She protested.

"Dust is gone and likely won't be able to come back." Jasmina said as she sat up and held out a hand. "I asked him if he would mind and he said 'No'."

"I don't…" Elenia started to say and then her face went blank. Jasmina smiled as her expression turned poleaxed.

"Let me guess." Jasmina said with a smirk. "Someone just told you to stop protesting and get off your duff?" Elenia nodded, clearly unable to speak. "Good. No words now." Elenia was sobbing as Jasmina pulled her close, but that was okay. Jasmina was crying too. Tears of joy.

* * *

"You don't have to do this." Elenia said quietly.

"We have been over this, Elenia." Jasmina said with a sigh. "_Yes_, I do. I will not leave you to face this burden alone. Even if I _could_ do such an ignoble thing, I owe you and Dust for what happened so long ago. I should have done more."

"You couldn't have stopped it." Elenia said as she stepped away from the chair Jasmina sat in. "Are you…_sure_?" She begged.

"You are cute when you are worried." Jasmina said with a smirk that turned evil as Elenia blushed. "And even _cuter_ when you are embarrassed." But then she lay her head back and the chair slowly sank until she was lying on her back, staring up at Healer who seemed… anxious. "I trust you, Healer." A tentacle sank to touch Jasmina's shoulder.

_We have never done this._ Healer said but Jasmina just smiled and shut her eyes. _Very well. It should not hurt. _Indeed, the whisper touch of tentacle on Jasmina's head was soft and gentle. She did not gasp as something held her head down. She _did_ gasp as something else invaded her right ear.

_Easy…_ Healer crooned to her and Jasmina felt herself relax. Something changed and Jasmina felt…different, but she could not define how. _There we go._ Jasmina heard the Healer, but… The touch on her shoulder was gone! _There._ Healer had a smile in her tone as Jasmina's eyes snapped open and she stared up at Elenia who was holding her head in an iron grip.

_Can you hear me?_ Elenia asked silently. In response, Jasmina sent the younger Tenno a series of lewd images and Elenia blushed again. "You are _sick_!"

_Will I need to do anything to… maintain the link, Healer?_ Jasmina asked as Elenia helped her sit up.

_No._ Healer said with a soft sound of amusement. _But… You __**do**__ need to work on control._ Jasmina stiffened and the Infested made an amused noise. _I bet every corner of the mass mind felt what you just sent Mind of Light._ Jasmina gasped, but Healer just chuckled. _She is too tense. See if you can work on that._ Then the Infested Ancient left the room! Elenia made a strangled noise, but Jasmina just chuckled.

_What do you call me?_ Jasmina asked after a moment.

_What do you think?_ Dust's mind snipped in. _We call you 'Hot Stuff'__._

_When I get my __**hands**__ on you…! _Jasmina snapped playfully but he was gone. "He… didn't really mean that. Did he?" She nearly begged Elenia. The younger Tenno hugged her.

"No." Elenia said with a smile. "Go ahead and ask."

_What… what do you call me?_ Jasmina asked with trepidation.

_Be easy, Fire Heart._ The mass mind replied Jasmina felt her eyes burn and Elenia hugged her again. _We will let you two… relax. _A mental smirk came from the mind mass but then it was gone.

"Fire Heart." Jasmina said, tears falling. "I… I guess that is appropriate." She shook herself. "So… now to duty?"

"If you are up to it." Elenia said with a nod. "We can…relax. Or wait until later."

"Later." Jasmina rose from the chair and strode to where an Ember Prime warframe hung. Hers. She slid into it and saw Elenia slide into her Mag warframe. Her systems chimed and… A strident alarm sounded and Jasmina jerked, her hands checking her weapons put of reflex. "Where?" She demanded as she grabbed her Embolist pistol and Dust's Glaive.

"The Nexus!" Elenia replied curtly, her own weapon ready. The Synapse rifle was rock steady in her hands.

The two Tenno darted from the room and ran into another that was bare rock just as a portal opened in front of them. They came face to face with a _dozen_ Prime warframes, _all_ with Prime weapons aimed at the two female Tenno. A Saryn –but a Saryn _Prime_!-was aiming a _Boltor Prime_ at Jasmina.

"Someone wants to talk to you." Mori said calmly.


	20. Chapter 20

**Waking**

_This has to be a dream._

Jasmina thought to herself as the cordon of Tenno in Prime warframes surrounding her and Elenia moved her through golden corridors. There were more Primes along the route. It seemed… yes, they were holding their weapons in _salute_. This had gone beyond odd and straight to _surreal_. Jasmina had already seen more Prime warframes and more Prime weapons in this place at this time, than she remembered ever seeing before in her life since waking from cryo. Indeed, she had never seen so many in one place at one time _ever_ that she recalled except once… Once _just_ before the Collapse. She looked to where Elenia was walking beside her and tried not to cringe.

_Both_ of them _away_ from their charges. The mind boggled at what could happen. Even _if_ all of the Prime warframed Tenno who had pointedly requested that Elenia and Jasmina follow them had been incredibly polite, it was still distressing. She hoped that nothing happened to the others while the two Caretakers were away. She kept her eyes peeled and found herself drawn to impossibilities at every step. But… it was familiar. She knew this place.

Humans stood by the walls, watching. All wore golden uniforms that Jasmina remembered vividly from…before. Architecture that she knew so well, but not falling down or left to rot, but maintained and…indeed, _polished_. Orokin. But… clean. Fresh. New, or at least newly refurbished. This wasn't possible. Orokin was gone. Fallen. She had seen too many of its death throes to think otherwise. She had fought through too many derelicts, too many fallen towers in the Void to think otherwise.

_Elenia?_ She sent, but the Saryn beside her –Mori- shook her head.

"Please, Mi'ladies." The Saryn said in an oddly formal, archaic tone. "It is not far. Your justified questions will be answered."

Elenia looked at Jasmina and shook her head fractionally. They had been divested of weapons, but not required to exit their warframes, which either spoke of stupidity or vast power. Jasmina knew which way she was trending currently and it _wasn't_ in the direction of stupidity. These… Tenno were not stupid. So… what? She could see her own anxiety mirrored in the Mag's posture beside her as their escorts led them through huge hallways towards a set of doors where four guards stood ready. Mori led them up to the door and saluted the guards. Jasmina could feel Dust's own apprehension through her connection to him. And his readiness. She had dropped Dust's Glaive. So why did she feel a weight on her right forearm? Looking at it, there was nothing. Was there?

"Caretakers Elenia and Jasmina, as requested." Mori said, her fist slapping her chest. Jasmina froze. Why did that bother her so much? Where had she seen such a gesture before? It… wasn't recent. Then it clicked and it took all of her self-control not to hiss. Not to _bolt_. She was still fighting herself when the doors opened in front of them to… wonder.

Jasmina was suddenly glad she still wore her helmet. Her expression at the sight that greeted her warframe's sensors would have given all _kinds_ of things away. The dozens of humans who stood by the walls were incidental. The Tenno who stood arrayed around the base of the small dais were also mostly incidental, even though Jasmina saw Karl and many of his people in the crowd of warframes. No, the two women who were just rising from chairs on the dais took all of Jasmina's attention. Both wore elaborate golden gowns. The one in back looked a little familiar. The one in front was unfamiliar. But it was the glowing crown on the elder one's head that caught and held all of Jasmina's attention. The Crown of Orokin. The mark of the royal house of Orokin, the constitutional monarchs who had governed the Orokin for millennia. She felt rather than saw the guards who had escorted them here melt away, she felt Elenia match her step forward towards the impossible Empress.

"Well met, Caretakers." The woman with the crown said formally. "Welcome to Avalon." Then she smiled. "You didn't answer your calls, so we had to improvise."

"I…" Jasmina kicked herself and then, slowly nodded to the Empress. Elenia did the same. When Jasmina looked at her, Elenia make a small gesture. Jasmina was elder, protocol said _she_ had to answer. Jasmina stifled a growl of annoyance. "Your… invitation was… _unexpected_." Jasmina said finally.

"We have survived the same way Caretaker Elenia has." The Orokin Empress said heavily. "We rely on secrecy. On stealth. On knowing where our enemies are and what they are doing." She bowed her head. "On knowing what our allies are doing." She glanced at Karl who nodded.

"We failed you." Karl said softly. "Both of you." Jasmina met his gaze levelly. That was the honest truth. But… Something was bothering her. She wasn't sure what it was. A gentle nudge within her had her look to the side. Warframes had 360 degree vision, so she did not miss the human in a medical tunic with the odd device in his hands aimed at her. It felt… familiar. A minute jerk from Elenia told Jasmina that the Mag had seen it too. This was a _trap_.

None of the Tenno in front of her had weapons in hand, but it would be the work of milliseconds to draw said weapons… Jasmina thought about Karl's response for a moment and then sighed.

"Did you?" She asked calmly. Karl stiffened and all of the Tenno with him did as well. "Or did this work out _exactly_ as you had hoped?" Beside her, she felt Elenia relax. Not to calm, no, to a _ready_ _stance_. She knew too. The pieces all fit now. Redi's patron stood in front of her, clad in a golden gown with a glowing golden crown on her head.

"I don't know what you mean." Karl said slowly.

"No?" Jasmina said calmly, her hands loose at her sides. She felt…something and knew without trying that her warframe abilities had just been dampened somehow. But… a nudge came from within and she was relieved. Dust was with her. "Then tell me something." She asked conversationally. "How is Iriana?"

"What?" Karl asked, confused.

"She isn't here, so I assume she isn't in on the secret." Jasmina said with a nod. "But from the reactions she showed, she was not faking her concern for Lisa, the girl Dust called 'Brownie'. So… did you _sedate_ her? Put her in _cryo_? Or just get her out of the way some other way?"

"Jasmina, you are not making sense." Karl said quietly.

"No?" Jasmina asked and her arm came up slowly to point at the medical person. "Then tell me why that _medic_ has a chuck of _Lisa_ in his _box_. The one _aimed_ at us. How did he get it, if not from _Redi_?" All eyes in the room spun to where the medic paled, the box in his hands sparkling. The Ember Prime's arm dropped to her side, but no one relaxed. "We can _feel_ our family even at a distance. Even _parts_ of them. Tell me… Empress." Jasmina said soberly. "How _does_ a renegade Tenno get _out_ of lockup, get to where he can _ambush_ my sister here, and then get to a _derelict_ spacecraft and _operate_ on not one, but _two_ unwilling subjects to put them in a horrific machine in less than 24 _hours_? I was told that such brain operations take time. So… how _did_ he do all of that in such a short amount of time? Simple. He had _help_. Even more than the Tenno who were _ordered_ to keep him safe." As Jasmina spoke, the Empress paled slightly. "What did he _promise_ you, Empress? An _end_ to the Infested?" She snapped.

"It's not like that." The Empress said quietly.

"No?" Jasmina said just as quietly. "My mate is _dead_, Empress. He died saving us all from Redi's madness. You _do_ know that the Technocyte virus that Redi targeted changed each and every Tenno, right? That his monstrosity would have killed every _single_ Tenno in the system. Right?"

"I know you are upset, Caretaker Jasmina." The Orokin Empress said calming. "But we are all friends here."

"_Are_ we?" Jasmina asked quietly, aware of weapons being raised, if not aimed just yet. "And while Elenia and I are _here_, _what_ is happening back where we were _found_? Hmmm?"

"Everyone calm down." The Empress said quietly. "Caretaker Jasmina… This is not what you think."

"Well, I _think_ you pulled me away from my family. My duty." Jasmina said slowly. "The same way your _father_ did. In this same _room__,_ no less." At that, the minor mutters that had started in the room went silent. "I was called here to Avalon with my small team. I was ordered, by your father, to go to the Caretaker facility. To _release_ the Infested. To my _shame_…" She said sadly. "I did as ordered. I left the rest of my kin to fight and die _alone_ while I went to an isolated research facility, _locked_ the researchers up and _let_ the horrors of Infestation _loose_ on the system." Karl was shaking his head, but Jasmina wasn't finished. "And now… an Orokin Empress is going to command me to do her bidding about the Infested. Aren't you?" She asked flatly.

"It's not that simple, Tenno Jasmina." The Empress said slowly. She shook her head. "You are emotional. You have lost your mate. I do understand your grief, but you are not thinking clearly."

"So…" Jasmina said as white coated forms appeared at the doors. "Confinement. Just like Dust?" She mused. "Lock us up and forget about _us_ for millennia too?" All of Karl's people were quailing as Jasmina braced the Empress, but Elenia was ready at her side.

"You are not thinking clearly." The Empress said gently. "We can help. We will care for you and for Dust's child…" Her words cut off in a choked cry as Jasmina raised her hand and a Glaive appeared in it! From nowhere! A familiar Prime Glaive! Dust's!

"Do. **Not**. Speak. My. Mate's. Name." Jasmina said with a growl worthy of Lephantis as almost _all_ of the Tenno in the room took aim at her. The Saryn Prime who had led her in… did not move. Neither did Olim. "You are not _worthy_ to speak his name! _You_ helped Redi in his madness. You are _directly_ responsible for my mate's _death_."

"Jasmina!" Karl said sharply, his Hek aimed. "Don't be stupid! _Drop_ it!"

"I _am_ responsible." The Empress said heavily from behind the _three_ Prime warframes that had moved between her and Jasmina. "I am trying to _fix_ this. Please. They did something to you. They put something in your brain. We detected it when you came in. We can get it out. Help you. Please. Stand down." Jasmina _growled_ at her and the tension in the room went through the roof, the civilians pressing back as the Tenno moved forward.

"Jasmina." Elenia said mildly from where she stood, her hands at her side. "Do you _really_ want to kill _Tenno_?"

"No." Jasmina said softly. "I want to kill _Redi_ again. Then bring him _back_ and do it _again_. At least four times." She said with an evil chuckle. The Glaive in her hand vanished as if it had never been, but no one relaxed. "You aided and abetted Redi's madness, Empress. You covered his tracks. You had this whole thing set up before we arrived, to confine us. For our own _good_ of course." The irony in her words was biting. "Too bad. We will be leaving now." She said to the Empress.

"I can't let you do that." The Empress said with a heavy sigh. "You are a danger."

"_You_ have _**no**_ idea." Jasmina snarled. While she spoke, she sent a tight beam thought to Elenia. _There is a portal under the floor in this room that I used last time I was here. Can you access it? I doubt they have changed the codes. _She sent a series of passwords to Elenia.

_If we do, they will be right behind us._ Elenia said dubiously, but then sighed mentally. _I can._

_Good. Do it. I will keep their attention. _Jasmina replied and turned to Karl. "I sincerely _hope_ your people who are not present are _not_ hunting my family, Tenno Karl." Will and Olim stood by the Rhino, the others were conspicuous in their absence. "I _do not_ want Tenno lives on my conscience, but I _will_ protect my family."

"Our orders are to take the humans into custody." Karl said softly. "They need help."

"Of _course_ they do." The irony was withering. "And purge the Infested with them of course." Jasmina continued. "It is what you _do_. Kill things whether they are hostile or not. Whether they can fight back or not." More than one of the surrounding Tenno growled in response to her insult.

"Tenno Jasmina, we are _not_ your enemies." The Empress said sharply. "We do not want to _be_ your enemies!"

"_My_ enemies?" Jasmina said softly. "Or my _family's_ enemies?" She asked softly.

"We _are_ your family!" Karl protested. "Sister, please!"

"Not _anymore_." Jasmina snapped. "You and the Empress _chose_ to help Redi, Karl. You _chose_ to destroy any chance of peace with any _part_ of the Infested. You _chose_ a path that ended with my mate's death. Fine. You do _not_ choose for me. You _will not_ choose for me. I choose _Elenia's_ family." A warm feeling came from within her. Dust's approval.

"Tenno Jasmina…" The Empress said sadly. "Please. Stand down. We do not want to harm you."

"Of course." Jasmine retorted in a disgusted tone. "What good are _hostages_ who are maimed? They don't make good _bait_ for Infested if they are torn apart by gunfire and swords, **do** they?" A gasp went around the room, but Jasmina did not take her eyes from the Empress.

"_Jasmina!_" Karl exclaimed. "It's not like that!"

"You all may have _forgotten_ what happened when the Infested were sent to war." Jasmine said sadly. "I have _not_. I have _lived_ with what I did ever since I _did_ it. Ever since the team I commanded opened the gates of _hell_ and let it rain down on the Sentients… And on Orokin." She added in a heartbroken voice. "I _believed_… In Orokin. Then… it was _gone_. By the Emperor's orders. But by _my_ hand."

"Jasmina…" Karl begged her. "Don't…"

"I am _still_ Tenno." Jasmina said soberly. "But I cannot _stand_ by and watch you _fools_ make the _exact_ _same_ mistakes again. What do you plan? To use me and Elenia as _bait_ to draw Infested into kill zones? To harvest our _brain matter_ to make traps or bioweapons? Or just to make Redi's machine again even flawed as it was?" The sheer disgust in her voice spoke volumes. "I will _not_ allow you to _screw_ any chance of humanity recovering by _playing_ with the Infested again. Not now, not _ever_. I will _not_ let you. We are leaving."

"You are in no position to make demands. You will be restrained." The Empress said coldly, her patience obviously exhausted. The white clad forms and some of the Prime warframes stepped forward. But they all paused when Jasmina…_laughed_.

"Neither are _you_." Jasmine said just as coldly and almost every weapon in the room was aimed at her now. The Saryn Prime… still hadn't moved. "Go ahead, gun us down, unarmed as we are. Prove to _everyone_ how strong Orokin is. But know _this_…" Jasmina did not take her eyes from the Empress. "If you _do_ gun us down, the _last_ remaining sane mind mass of Infested will _lose_ it's sanity. They know where we are now. They _will_ find a way to reach this refuge and _when_ they _do_…" She shrugged. "I _think_ you can imagine what will happen. I don't need to. I _saw_ it firsthand. I let them loose."

"Everybody _stop_!" Michelle screamed from behind the Empress, then ran down the dais to stand in front of Jasmina. A Mag Prime moved to stand in front of her, but Michelle snarled and stood to the side. "Jasmina… don't… We need you." The Saryn Prime Mori was shaking her head nearby. The sole Tenno in the _room_ who had _not_ drawn a weapon, Jasmina noted. Olim had his weapon out, but it was drooping, not aimed.

"I don't want to." Jasmina said, her ire fading to be replaced by sadness. "Michelle… Move back, please." She said kindly. "I do not blame you. I do not even blame the _Empress_. Not really. It's what rulers _do_. They make decisions to sacrifice others for gains. And if those others are Unclean… well…" She shrugged. "Small loss, right?"

"No." Michelle said, tears starting to fall. "Jasmina… Please…" She did step back, her guard in front of her.

"When I took the Caretaker oath, Michelle…" Jasmina spoke as if the two of them were the only ones in the room. "…I swore to protect the mind mass. To do my _duty_. I don't _want_ to fight Tenno. I don't _want_ to fight Orokin. The problem as I see it is that if the _Empress_ cannot have the Infested as a weapon, _no one can_. Right?" She asked the Empress coldly. Karl and the rest of his followers… lowered their weapons.

"Logic says so." The Empress replied calmly. "But we _do_ have you."

"Do you? Do you _really?_" Jasmina asked and then smiled as the floor around her feet lit up. Elenia had activated the hidden portal. "Goodbye, Empress. And know this, I am _asleep_ no longer. I am _deaf_ and _blind_ no longer. Feral infested will attack, my family will _not_ unless attacked first. I _truly_ recommend you do not do so."

"Stop her!" The Empress commanded and several Royal Guard Tenno started forward, melee weapons coming out. They all ducked as Jasmina's Glaive appeared again and flew, arcing this way and that, not hitting anyone, but remaining in flight. Keeping everyone at bay, blocking the few shots fired and foiling the aim of others. Guided by her will with Dust's aid.

"Come after me and mine and we _will_ respond in kind." Jasmina warned the Empress as the portal powered up. "You will not like what happens. And for the _record_, you and your _whole_ family can _****** off**_." She flipped the Empress of Orokin the middle finger. Then they were back in the nexus chamber. "Seal it!" Jasmina snapped and Elenia hurried to obey. Jasmina did not relax until the portal hissed and went dark. It would take even Orokin techs time to reactivate the portal. "Oh… dear…"

"I just about went in my _pants_, Jasmina!" Elenia complained. "Did you _have_ to be quite so confrontational?"

"Considering what happened the _last_ time I was in that room?" Jasmina said, sinking to her knees in relief. "Yes." She shook herself. "We better get to the family, see how many of Karl's people are in the tunnels. And then we will have to move."

"We won't be able to use the portals." Elenia said soberly. "They can track them."

"We can… acquire some transportation." Jasmine said with a smirk that faded. "I just… I didn't want to go rogue."

"You are not." Elenia said stoutly. "You are obeying older orders. And she didn't actually _order_ you to do anything, did she?"

"She didn't have _time_." Jasmine said with a laugh that Elenia shared. Then she rose and with her sister, went forth to start her new life.

* * *

Jasmina could finally rest. They had found and removed their family from hiding places before Karl's Tenno -who were indeed searching for them but not very hard- could get too close and evacuated to a derelict Corpus spacecraft that wasn't _quite_ as derelict as it looked. The engines were solid and the life support far more than was needed for the small group. It just _looked_ totally dead to sight and sensor.

"What now, Jasmina?" Elenia said, lying down on a bunk nearby. Both females had taken off their warframes, but the fully armed systems hung nearby. "Where do we go?"

"I have been thinking about that, actually." Jasmina said, not moving from the bunk, or taking her arm from in front of her face. She was so… so tired. It hurt just to move. "Anywhere we go in the main system, Karl and his people can track us. If we use the portals, the Orokin of Avalon can track us. So… We have to go somewhere that they won't look."

"The Void?" Elenia asked with distaste. "I have avoided that. The humans have little protection against the warping of the dimensional shifts and the Infested…" She shuddered a bit. "And that doesn't even begin to describe what will happen if a neural sentry is online."

"Actually no." Jasmina said quietly. "I was thinking more about the Deep Cold." She heard a rustling, Elenia had tensed. She didn't blame the younger Tenno.

The Deep Cold was slang for an area above and below the ecliptic of the solar system. Every orbit within the precisely engineered platform that was the Solar System when Orokin was done tinkering with planetoids and moving planets around, hung in a distinct place in the cosmos. But all of them lay on the same plane, something that would have been utterly unthinkable before Orokin's technological wizardry. The Deep Cold was a region where myths abounded. Ghost fleets, phantom armies, boogeymen all. Jasmina would not have been surprised if Stalker had a base somewhere in that area, it was well off the beaten path. Indeed, many Tenno dojos were hidden in sections of that distant black.

"And if we run afoul of Tenno?" Elenia asked soberly.

"Actually…" Jasmina said sadly. "I know of a place we can hide. A place no one in their right minds will look for us. A solid base of operations with reasonably salvageable systems. The Sentients hit the place hard and killed the inhabitants, but left the facility intact."

"What kind of a place?" Elenia asked, her tone curious. "We have to have space for the humans and a way for Infested to come and go."

"It has all of that." Jasmina said sadly. "It was once a small Tenno dojo." Elenia jerked and Jasmina nodded. "My family's."

"Jasmina… I…" Elenia said softly, clearly upset. "We can't move into a _Tenno dojo_!"

"It's small and it's mine. My sole inheritance." Jasmine said with a sigh. "And no one would think of it, since it was destroyed during the war. But… It wasn't. Not quite. It would be perfect as a base of operations, using derelict spacecraft on ballistic courses to get to and from it. There are enough wrecks floating around we can hop from one to another on the small Corpus transport you …'acquired'. It's reasonably stealthy and if anyone looks? It's a Corpus ship doing recon of Orokin wrecks."

"And if the _Corpus_ look?" Elenia asked, caution prominent in her tone.

"Then they run into a ship filled with Infested." Jasmina said with obvious relish. "And we make sure they don't look any further."

"Are you… okay with us going there?" Elenia asked, worried. "I mean…if it was your _family's_…?"

"They are all dead." Jasmina said flatly. She did not move as a warm mass sat on the bunk beside her. "I… I wasn't close to them, but I was close enough to go when the automated systems said they had been hit. No survivors. They…" She started to shudder and warm arms held her. "I think… Mom wouldn't mind if I brought a grandkid to be born in her home. Dad might. We never really got along, but we were kin. When he died… When the place fell… I… I never went back."

"We don't have to go there." Elenia said soberly. "We can stay on ships, hop from one to another. Stay ahead of pursuit that way."

"For how long?" Jasmina asked plaintively. "Sooner or later we would be detected. We need to go to ground. I… don't think they would mind. They taught me to think for myself. To think about what I did and why. They would like you I think." She said, hugging Elenia back. Tomorrow could take care of tomorrow, for now, Jasmina of the Tenno had her family and her duty. That was all that mattered.

"If you are okay with it, we can check it out." Elenia said with a sigh.

"One more thing." Jasmina said, her tone quiet. "I need Healer to take Dust's kid out."

"What?" Elenia snapped. "_No_!"

_Hear me out?_ Jasmina begged. Elenia jerked, but nodded. The mind mass was following her mental speech intently now, almost all worried. Dust… seemed calm. _I will be needed. I will have to fight._

_We can hope not._ Elenia protested, but then sighed. _But probably._

_I need to focus on protecting our whole family. I need to know our kid is safe. _Jasmina said softly. _You said you could take it out? Care for it?_ She asked the mind mass.

_We can._ The mind mass said reluctantly. _Fire Heart… Think. This is your __**child**__! Sword of Silence?_

_Jasmina has my support. And I think it is a good idea. _Dust said quietly. _What we do is not safe._ A feeling of love seeped through Jasmina and she smiled a bit forlornly. _A pod would work I think, but a surrogate would be better._

_Me._ Lisa's quiet declaration cut through the sudden silence on the mental plane like a knife. _I was going to suggest it._ _We are compatible. I checked._

_You honor me, Lisa._ Jasmina said, tears starting to fall.

_You and your mate saved us._ Lisa said with a smile in her voice. _You both cared for me when I was nothing but a ball of feral instinct. The least I can do is help you._

_We will be ready when you are, Fire Heart. _The mind mass promised. _For now, rest. Recover._

_Good advice._ Jasmina said with a sigh and closed off her mental link. She could receive, but was not transmitting. It came easy to one who had used a warframe for so long. "So? We go to the Deep Cold?"

"If you are sure." Elenia said and Jasmina nodded. But then Elenia smiled wickedly. "But… whatever will we _do_ until we get there?" She asked in a knowing tone as her hands…started to roam.

"Oh, I think we can figure something out." Jasmina said with a smile. She was nearly as unpracticed as Elenia was, but instinct was a wonderful thing. She paused as a soft voice sounded deep inside her brain.

_Instinct _is_ a wonderful thing, Jasmina._ Dust said gently. _And your instincts have served and __**will**__ serve you well. Get your rest. You are gonna need it. _He said with a leer in his voice, and then he was gone. No, not gone. Receded.

_No peeking!_ Jasmina said with a smile as she focused on the here and now. On her own instincts.

* * *

The ancient AI hybrid watched sadly as Jasmina relaxed at long last. She did not, indeed, she _could_ not speak to the woman now. It wasn't physically possible. But an acquaintance had allowed her to watch her Tenno one last time.

_We will ward her now that she has woken to her path__._

_I know._ The Lotus responded. _Please… She didn't deserve this. None of them did._

_No. Oh Lotus, we are __**sorry**__. We never __**intended**__ strife amongst your children._

_Not your fault._ The Lotus replied easily. _You have as much a right to exist as __**any**__. Thank the ancestors she listened to Dust's prompting. She will need him. Eliza sure screwed the pooch on this one. Redi was… persuasive, but she is supposed to be smarter than that. I… cannot interfere now that Jasmina is changing. But you __**can**__. Please… be gentle._

_Of course. Her pregnancy alone would make us handle her carefully. She is strong. But she is so fragile too. _The last sane mind mass of Infested said with palpable sadness. _We will not hurt her. Fire Heart is needed. Now more than ever. _

_That she is._ The Lotus agreed. _Her instincts will guide the more than just her family in the coming storm__._

_Indeed._


End file.
